Fulfillment
by Krillin Fan
Summary: Three humans enslaved on Vegetasei try to find the one thing that will bring that sense of fulfillment to their lives. K18, G K CC, SLIGHT BV.
1. Chapter 1

-1**Fulfillment**

_Okay, people. This is gonna be my first shot at an A/U fic. The setting: Vegeta-sei. I know, you're all thinking 'Wow. How unoriginal can you get?!' But bear with me. This may sound like another run of the mill fic that probably won't be finished, but rest assured that I plan to do some original things in here. And I will finish it. I've made it a point to never abandon any of my stories once I have them posted. Also, since this is my FIRST A/U, your reviews and encouragement will be both needed and appreciated. So, if you like it let me know. Now, without further ado, my story._

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Home. That one word that had so many meanings. On a more personal level, it was the place in which one resided with their family. On a more impersonal level it was simply where one resided. It could be their house, city, nation, even as broad as their planet. But, no matter how you considered it, you always had a place to call home. Or so it had seemed.

Now, for so many, the word home was naught but a pleasant dream, as they had been so forcefully pulled away from it, in every sense of the word. They had been torn from their loved ones, their houses, their cities. They had been taken from their own planet, everything they once knew as home was in ruins. And the cause of all this? The Saiyans.

They had arrived only a few days beforehand. They gave no warnings, issued no demands. They had just attacked, taking what they wanted, leveling entire cities, pressing all the planet's inhabitants into slavery with little opposition.

One of said inhabitants was a young, raven-haired woman. Her father had been a king, a great warrior feared by all who called him enemy, yet loved by all who called him friend. A great man, her father. Her dark eyes hardened at the memory. He was indeed a great man, and how did the Saiyans treat him? They didn't even allow him the opportunity to speak; they had simply vaporized him instantly. Everyone else in their small principality had been taken as slaves back to the Saiyans' home planet. Again little resistance.

Still, there had been some. The armies of Earth had tried to fight, and were successful a handful of times. But for every Saiyan they managed to kill, their commander would send in five more. And sadly, that was more than enough to get the job done.

Other stories abounded. One declared that one of the officers in charge of the invasion had been killed by some green-skinned creature that possessed incredible power. But then came reports that the creature had been over powered and killed. No one had even managed to get his name.

Then came the one time that victory had seemed inevitable. A report had come through that the commander of the invasion, a Saiyan named Nappa, had been killed, his head sliced clean off and his camp destroyed. The people had thought for sure that the Saiyans would leave now. But that's when their Prince had come to lead the invasion personally. Then things got REALLY bad.

Suffice it to say that the resistance didn't last long. The persons responsible for the commander's death had all been killed, a group of only four, who'd have thought, all save one. The Prince had handled that job himself, publicly declaring that the strongest of them be kept as a 'trophy', as a means of destroying any hope that they had managed to maintain. And for further humiliation, he'd paraded him around the detention camps in chains, his head slung low, and his eyes showing that he had been broken.

The girl's brow furrowed. That man had been the strangest looking human being, so much so that she'd thought him to be another alien: lack of a nose, abnormally short stature, and strange eyes. The whites of his eyes were… well, not white, but the same color as his skin. Very strange indeed. Her mind recalled the term that her new friend had used to describe him. 'Crack baby'. A crude term, but almost definitely accurate. And also ironic: the fate of the world lay in the hands of one who had no doubt time and again been scorned by the very society he was trying to save. Ironic, yes, and sad.

The girl looked out the window of her little cell area, hoping to get one last look at the planet she was leaving behind. Even from here she could see the scarring that the two-year invasion had left. Why they'd wanted it so bad she didn't know and frankly didn't care. It wouldn't be much use to them now.

She was snapped out of her thoughts by her new friend calling her name. "Hey, Chi-Chi, are you okay?"

Chi-Chi turned to look at the blue-haired girl that had so rapidly become her friend during their year long stay together in the detention camp. "In all honesty, Bulma, I don't think I'll ever be okay again. I don't think any of us will."

"I know. It's horrible, what they did. I just don't get it. Why did they want our home so badly?"

A scowl settled on Chi-Chi's face. "Knowing those monsters, they didn't want it. Maybe they didn't even really want us. It was probably just one big, sick game to them."

Bulma frowned. "You might be right. A lot of what they do doesn't seem to have any logical reason behind it." She waited a moment before finally admitting, "I'm scared."

Chi-Chi felt bad for her friend. She knew the cause for her worry; Bulma and her father were undoubtedly geniuses in every sense of the word, and in almost every field of science known to man. No doubt they'd be put to work in some kind of laboratory. But her mother, now that was a different story entirely. She was a nice lady, very sweet and very pretty. She didn't look anywhere near her age; in fact one might mistake her for Bulma's older sister. And that was the problem. Her fate would almost assuredly land her in someone's harem as another pretty plaything.

Chi-Chi had feared the same for her mother until that fear was laid to rest along with her disease-ridden corpse. They hadn't been allowed any medical treatment. As a direct result, many people died of infections and other diseases that could have so easily been cured.

Both girls jumped with fright as the door to their little cell opened and four male guards sauntered in. This made all the occupants nervous, especially considering that this was an all-female cell block. They all seemed to hold their breath which was released in a collective gasp at the revelation of why they had come. There, being drug behind them was that man, the resistance fighter that had been captured. They could only speculate as to why he had been brought here.

Finally, one of them spoke. "Here you go, scum." he said. "Welcome to your new home." As he prepared to release his chains, however, he was rewarded with a quick kick to the face. The other guards responded quickly, knocking him to the ground, berating him with kicks, punches and insults. One of them pulled a rather wicked-looking electric prod from his belt and jabbed the little man with it several times, delighting at the screams he gave each time.

As if that wasn't enough, they decided to add insult to injury as they proceeded to remove the bottom half of their uniforms and urinated on his battered form, an action that they seemed to find immensely funny. After their 'business' was taken care of, the same one from before spoke. "That wasn't very nice, freak. And after we gave you all these new playmates to amuse yourself with. I'm inclined to put you back in the hole you came from, but the Prince's orders are the Prince's orders. Enjoy yourself, little man." With that, the guards exited the cell, their laughter echoing off the walls.

Bulma and Chi-Chi just stared at the badly beaten little man in front of them. Finally, when he was sure they were gone, he pulled himself up with little effort and took note of his surroundings. "Wow," he muttered to himself. "This is a lot bigger than the place they had me before."

The girls looked at each other, the shock evident on their faces. The cell they were currently in was only big enough to hold about ten people, and it currently held twenty-one. If he thought this was spacious, they could only imagine what his last cell was like.

The man stood up and stretched as best he could in the tightly packed space, and sat down on an as yet occupied bed, which happened to belong to Bulma. She and Chi-Chi frowned and walked over to him. Getting a bed had been hard enough; there was no way Bulma was going to give hers up.

They sopped in front of the little man and Chi-Chi cleared her throat to get his attention. He jumped slightly and looked up at the two girls and began blushing uncontrollably, a small, nervous laugh escaping his lips. Chi-Chi stood, arms crossed in front of her chest and Bulma with her hands on her hips, tapping her foot impatiently. Finally, Bulma spoke. "What do you think you're doing?"

He seemed to stutter for a while before finding his voice. "Uh… I'm sitting."

"On MY bed."

"Really?" He stood up quickly. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…"

Chi-Chi smiled a little. This guy seemed decent enough. At least he wasn't a jerk like some of the guys they'd run into on this ship. "What's your name?" she asked.

"Krillin."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Chi-Chi and this is Bulma."

Bulma managed a smile and a small "Hello."

The three stood there in a rather awkward silence for several hours, the girls noticing some of the other females in the cell looking at him out of curious interest. Bulma herself had to admit that she was curious about him, too. Curiosity had always been one of her prominent traits. Finally, she worked up the nerve to ask him. "So, why did they put you in here?"

Both girls noticed him blushing again as he started to squirm a little and mumbled under his breath.

Chi-Chi was starting to get a little irritated. "Just spit it out!"

Krillin took a deep breath before speaking. "Do you know why you're here?"

"No."

"Well," he continued, the blush creeping back into his cheeks, "all the girls that were placed in this cell were specially selected based on strength and… uh…beauty. The Prince decided that he wanted the next generation of slaves to be stronger than this one, so he kept you all separate for breeding." He shrunk down even lower as he noticed both girls scowling at him slightly. "Anyhow the Prince figured that if he selected males to breed you with that looks didn't matter. Since he figured you'd be desperate enough to get pregnant to help avoid being put to work. And that's kinda why I'm here, to make sure that the next generation is…" He trailed off there, his face turning beet red from a mixture of embarrassment and shame.

Bulma was the first to pick up on what he was saying. "I see. So they sent you in here to get us pregnant?"

Krillin just slowly nodded his head. "They said since I'm the strongest of my race that I'd produce superior offspring, so…"

Chi-Chi stood there shocked. They had sent this man down here to try to get them all pregnant? The nerve of those… ANIMALS! "And what about you?" she asked him. "What are you gonna do?"

Krillin hung his head again and sighed. "Nothing," he said. "I'm not gonna do anything. I refuse to do something like that." He looked up at the ceiling before continuing. "I always wanted a family, though. Someone to love me, you know? I couldn't possibly do something like that unless they did." He smiled at the girls. "Don't worry, you're safe with me."

Suddenly, the three were jerked right off their feet and landed in a heap on the floor. By the time they managed to stand up, three male guards appeared along with an officer. He turned to the other guards and pointed at Krillin. "Get that one back in his chains." He then turned and smirked at all the occupants of the cell. "I trust you all had fun?"

Chi-Chi made it a point to remember what this one looked like: he was fairly tall, with narrow, sinister black eyes. Perhaps most noticeably was the abnormally long hair he was growing; it grew the entire length of his back.

She looked over to see the guards put the last of the chains on Krillin. This time he hadn't even put up a fight, though she suspected it was because he didn't want to hurt the girls in the cell. She then turned her attention to Bulma; the other girl looked almost petrified. Chi-Chi reached over and squeezed her hand gently, trying to comfort her at least a little.

The Saiyan officer spoke again. "We've reached our final destination. All of you line up and prepare to exit the ship. Now! Anyone who even tries to cause trouble will be killed. Understand, scum?!"

He nodded his head and the women followed him out of their cell, the four guards dragging Krillin not more than three feet behind them. As they exited the ship, the first thing they noticed was the sky. The very sky of this planet seemed to radiate violence, as it was a pale shade of crimson. The air smelled of death, and everywhere they looked there seemed to be signs of death and destruction, from the ruins of buildings to the openly rotting carcasses of slaves being hauled off of the showroom floor. The officer noticed the horrified look on the faces of the women and let out a terrifying, insane laugh. "Welcome to Vegeta-sei, ladies!"

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_Well, that's the first chapter. How was it? And before anyone even says that the whole situation with Krillin being sent to the women is a stretch, let me shoot that argument down right now. Often times in the African slave trade, they slave traders would pick out the slaves that they felt were strongest and would produce the strongest offspring and 'breed' them. Disgusting, I know, but then, so is slavery. Please let me know what you thought. Later!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Fulfillment**

_Here goes chapter 2. Thanks to everyone who reviewed, or sent a PM review if this site wouldn't let them review normally. I really appreciate the support, especially since this is my first foray into A/U, and I'm very nervous. I hope this is something you'll all enjoy. No big plot developments yet, just some filler stuff. And some new characters are introduced. _

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Darkness. Everywhere he looked, there was darkness. What little light entered the cell in which he was kept only served to remind him of his current condition. He had been placed here by order of the King, his only crime being that he had disagreed with an order. He had refused to go on a purge. Even when they'd offered him the position of an officer in the military, which was a considerable step up from his previous position, he had refused. Now he was paying for that decision.

He knew that they'd release him soon. The purge had ended and all the ships had returned. All save the one that was lost, anyway. He also knew his brother would soon be coming to see him, no doubt to rub his situation and helplessness in his face. How his brother could betray their father's memory he would never understand, nor accept.

With that thought came the memories of what had happened before. How he had nearly been shipped of on a purge as an infant ay the order of a now -dead tyrant. How his father had succeeded in saving his people. And how his father had been betrayed.

He was pulled from his thoughts as his ears picked up the sounds of a reporting sentry. The Prince had returned and he had brought a special 'present' for the King. And if the Prince had returned, his brother's arrival was imminent. With a low murmur of discontent, he hung his head, waiting for the inevitable.

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In another section of the palace, things were not much more pleasant, as the occupant of a certain bedroom was feeling much the same as the occupant of the cell so many floors below her. Her surroundings may have been much more ornate and immaculate, but her heart felt as though it were in a prison all its own. It had started many years ago, when she was first born. She and her brother were twins, which was an unnatural occurrence amongst Saiyans. Her brother had been born first and had appeared to be a normal Saiyan baby, other than a pair of strange blue eyes. All the nurses at the hospital already seemed to be swooning over the little boy, his eyes made him all the more handsome, they'd said. But then, when she was born, her parents had received the shock of their lives; their baby had yellow hair.

At least that's what they called it. Being born with the yellow hair and blue eyes was strange enough, but even her tail fur was that same yellow color. Many people didn't know quite what to make of her over the years. When she'd finally come of age, however, the others had definitely taken notice. All the other females had made fun of her, called her a freak of nature. The males, however, treated her one of two ways; some were repulsed by her deformity, others seemed to eye her as if she were a piece of meat. This normally wouldn't have mattered to her, but when some males had discovered a way to mate without forming the bond, she became increasingly worried. How could she tell now if anyone would actually care for her? How would she know if anyone truly loved her, or if they were just using her?

'My brother would know', she thought to herself. She had been hoping against hope for her brother's safe return. He'd gone on a diplomatic mission to a planet just on the fringe of the territory of their allies. His purpose was ironic to both him and her: he had to defend a purging that he himself had argued against. But, it was either that or be sent on the purging.

Interestingly enough, he'd taken his pregnant mate with him. She smiled at the thought of his brother's mate. Keya had been one of the few who had not teased her for being different, but perhaps that was because she was slightly different herself. She was shorter than most Saiyan females, not more than a few inches over five feet and had also been born with strange eyes, a light brown as opposed to the dark brown or black eyes most Saiyans were born with. She had light brown skin, perhaps even light enough to be considered a dark tan, and dark red hair ending just below her shoulders. All in all, a very unique woman. That was no doubt the reason her brother had chosen her. When he'd first brought Keya to meet his family, she'd been leery of her, in part because she was afraid to be mocked again. But the two had actually gotten on quite well. The girl could talk your ear off sometimes, but that was actually one of her endearing qualities; as much as she'd talk, she was always prepared to listen to whatever you had to say.

She became alert once again when she heard a knock at her bedroom door. "Enter."

One of the palace servants walked into the room and bowed her head. "Excuse me, my lady, but your father requests that you join him in the courtyard. He also requests that you be prepared to leave soon."

'Why? Where am I going?"

The servant girl looked up. "I am unsure, madam. He only asked that I fetch you, he said nothing of your destination."

She sighed. "Very well, tell him I'll be along shortly."

The servant bowed her head again. "Yes, Lady Juuhachi."

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Chi-Chi's head was spinning. First, they'd arrived on this godforsaken planet as slaves. Now, Bulma had been pulled away from the rest and been given, of all things, third-class citizenship due to her scientific expertise. Now, Chi-Chi and the rest of the slave were being hauled to the nearby capitol city to be sold or God only knew what else, and the thought made her nervous. She'd already been separated from one of the only friends she'd made since her captivity. Would she be separated from Krillin, too? She was stronger than most other women on the wagon with her, but the idea of being alone was still unappealing.

Finally, she worked up enough courage to ask the long-haired officer about their destination. "Hey. Where are we going?"

He whirled to face the woman that was riding on the wagon he was currently walking next to and delivered her a sharp slap across the face. "You'll learn to speak when spoke to, wench! For some bizarre reason, this ugly lot has been bought by the palace. No doubt for your stronger offspring." He looked at Krillin and smirked. "I'll bet you had some fun, didn't you, ugly one?" He shifted his gaze back to Chi-Chi. "And I'll bet he had the most fun with you. My, you're a pretty little whore, aren't you?"

He had to take a step back to avoid the enraged woman's lunge, erupting into a fit of laughter. "Struck a nerve, I see. Can't say as I blame you. I wouldn't want the world to know I got screwed by something that ugly either." With one last laugh, he turned away and began to walk ahead of the wagon.

Chi-Chi turned and looked at Krillin. Sure enough, he once again had his head hung low in shame, trying hard to stop the sobbing that brose unbidden in his throat, muttering two words over and over.

"I'm sorry."

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Lady Juuhachi, or Juu as her friends called her, arrived in the palace courtyard to see her father standing bear the fountain, awaiting her presence. He turned and smiled at the sight of his daughter, dressed in a simple gown. Normally, she wouldn't have dressed in such girlie apparel, but her father refused to allow her to wear her armor in public; he said it drew too much attention to her already very noticeable figure and wouldn't stand for all the looks that it drew from the un-mated males and even the more unscrupulous mated males.

"You look lovely, my dear."

She smiled slightly at her father. He could be a little overprotective of her, but she knew deep down that he only did it because he loved her. "Thank you. You wanted to see me?"

The smile faded from her father's face, the twinkle gone from his dark eyes. "Yes, about that. I'm afraid, my dear, that we must attend a bit of a ceremony… at the King's request."

Juu's eyes opened wide, her mouth hanging slightly agape. "What? He's not still trying to mate me with that annoying, bratty Price, is he?"

Her father narrowed his eyes at her. "That's enough, Juuhachi. You will not speak of the Prince in such a manner." His face softened some. "But, no, he's not. As I understand it, he has accepted the fact that you seem to harbor a bit of dislike for one another."

Juu scoffed at the statement. A bit of dislike was a gross understatement; they hated each other. He was an arrogant, self-absorbed jerk who was only interested in what others could do for him. Add to that the fact that he had always treated Juu like a freak, and that led to more than a 'mutual dislike'.

"Well, then what does he want?" she asked.

Her father looked up at the sky and sighed. She certainly had her mother's attitude, may she rest in peace. "Apparently, all the nobles are to attend a bit of a celebration. The Prince has returned from the purge, and he's brought the King a gift. It seems he caught the one giving us so much trouble down on that little mud ball and is bringing him back."

Juu's eyes lit up at the mention of the new captive, and her father smiled. She'd been fascinated by the stories of that particular human being able to fend off even some of the strongest of the Saiyans. Now she'd have an opportunity to meet her 'hero'. "In fact," he continued, "they're bringing him to the palace as we speak."

Before another word could be spoken, she was gone, already headed up the stairs to the outer wall to see whether or not they had arrived.

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They had arrived. Even from a great distance they could see a great palace sitting high above the rest of the city. Their new home. The place where they would be enslaved.

Krillin was feeling especially glum. This was his fault; those people had been his responsibility. He was supposed to defend them. That was what his master had trained him for, after all. Yet, despite all that training, he'd failed. The people had still been enslaved. And to make matters worse, he'd been expected to pretty much rape the women in his cell. He felt awful, plain and simple.

He sat in the wagon, his head still hung low, and Chi-Chi's arm wrapped around him for comfort. He smiled slightly at that. She seemed to actually care about him and, amazingly enough, didn't blame him for what happened. Of course Bulma hadn't either, but now, she was gone. Now he had only one friend in this world. Well, only one that he knew the whereabouts of, anyway.

Krillin looked up and noticed the long haired Saiyan officer making his way away from the wagon and through a door in the side of the palace. Nothing strange there; he was probably reporting that the slaves had arrived. He looked up at the sky, trying to clear hi mind of the thoughts plaguing his mid, and gasped at what he saw.

There on top of the wall, staring at him -HIM of all people- was a blonde-haired angel.

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Juu stared down at the only male in the group of slaves being transported in the wagon. This was the one that had given them so much trouble? He looked weak. He was small, certainly smaller than the other human males that had come to Vegeta-sei over the months. His clothing had been torn , he looked slightly malnourished, he was nearly bald , and… he had no nose? That was odd. She tilted her head slightly as she noticed that most of the females seemed to try to give him a wide berth, with the exception of a few.

She was forced to blink when he began to stare back up at her. His eyes, they were filled with pain. Like he didn't have a real friend in the world. 'Just like me,' she thought. She smiled slightly at him and he turned away, blushing. She had a feeling that things at home were going to be interesting indeed.

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The long haired Saiyan made his way through the dark passageways to the cells in the far back of the dungeon, intent on seeing the one that had been on his mind since his return. They needed to have words, those two, and he hoped that perhaps his brother was no longer acting like a fool. Finally, he reached the cell that held his kin.

"Well, Brother, dear. Are you ready to come to your senses, or will you have to carry out the remainder of your sentence?"

The other Saiyan looked up at his older brother, his unruly black hair now plastered to his head with sweat and grime, his wrists scarred from struggling against his chains, but his eyes still filled with fire as he spoke. "How could you? How could you betray our father's memory like that? He worked so hard to free our people from Frieza and you just turn around and continue the senseless slaughter anyway! Why?!"

The long haired one laughed. "You are a fool, little brother. Father freed us, yes. But now we can reap the profits of our business without having to worry about that gender-confused lizard dipping his fingers in the till. Father was a fool for not realizing that with Frieza gone, we could finally take our place as rulers of the Universe!"

The younger of the two glared at his brother. "Do you even hear yourself?! You're no different than Frieza."

The elder smirked. "Ah, little brother, you're just as idealistic as Father was. And where did that get him? Dead, slaughtered like an animal, that's where!"

The younger Saiyan lunged at his brother, straining against the chains that held him, causing his brother no end of amusement. "You know," he said, continuing to smirk, "you remind me a lot of a certain slave girl. A human. Why don't you go join them, you're so fond of their kind." He began to walk away, calling back to his brother. "In fact, you and the little whore would be perfect for each other. If you don't mind your women slightly used, that is. Sweet dreams, Kakarot!"

As he walked away, he could hear his brother's screams echoing off the walls of the dungeon. "You can't keep me here! You hear me, Raditz?! You can't keep me here forever! And when I do get out, I'll make you pay. I swear it!!"

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_Well, that's chapter 2! Okay, time for reader interaction: I need a name for Juu's father. Can anyone supply me with one? And no, unlike other A/U, he's not Dr. Gero. And lest anyone panic, Chi-Chi and Krillin do not start any kind of romantic relationship in this fic. They're just best friends. I figured I'd put him in that role instead of Bulma for the sake of originality. Well, tell me what you thought. Is this original? Review, please._

_And special thanks to D4 for providing me with Keya._


	3. Chapter 3

**Fulfillment**

_Time for the (somewhat) long awaited chapter 3.I would have done this sooner, but I had a hard time getting a name for Juu's pa. But I found one, some of you may know what it means and laugh, but there it is. Now, on to the chapter. I hope you like it. Hope it's original, too. (P.S. Semi-Important note at the end of this Chap.)_

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Death was everywhere in the burning encampment. Everywhere one looked on the Planet Vergasso, they could see the bodies strewn about; some obviously killed in a quite brutal way, necks and various other bones snapped in two. Others with simple puncture wounds in major arteries which caused them to bleed out until they were no more.

All this had happened to a Saiyan crew, whose mission to this planet had been purely diplomatic. Most of the members were not combat-trained, though their skills were admittedly better than many of their race. The few that were, however, were the first to be killed. No warnings, no sound, not even a reason given for this attack. The creature responsible had simply rushed in and began his ruthless slaughter.

His employer was pleased. When he'd found this creature, he was told that it was the best in its field, but this? This was nothing short of amazing! This creature had accomplished in mere minutes what would have taken his troops anywhere up to three days to finish, and even then there was no guarantee of victory. This creature certainly was good.

And Cooler certainly was pleased.

A streak of green streaked toward him, and he soon found himself staring into the evil, reptilian eyes of the creature; eyes that were set in a green, insectoid face that could only have come from a nightmare. "Well done," he told the creature before him. "This is far beyond what I had expected from you. The entire crew in less than twenty minutes!" He laughed. "You make a fine monkey exterminator."

A small, spine-chilling smile graced the creature's face as he twitched his long, blood-soaked tail behind him. "Indeed, it was a most bountiful harvest. I can't tell you the euphoria…." His words trailed off and his face became one of extreme concentration. Quickly, without saying a word, he rushed over to a pile of debris, where he found a cowering female Saiyan, obviously with child, seated next to her mate. He was obviously already dead, several puncture wounds in his chest showed that well enough. The creature remembered that kill fondly; the others had made such an effort to protect him that he had proved to be a worthy prize, which had also damaged the morale of those that had still been alive. An evil grin spread across the orange ridge that served as his mouth. So, he had a mate? Perfect.

Cooler set himself down behind him, sizing up the situation. A wicked grin settled upon his lips as well. He recognized the dead male, he had seen his father. The old fool had brazenly sent his family a transmission proclaiming the Saiyans' freedom after his brother's death. He had been inclined to retaliate after such an insult, but his father had refused to allow it, said that that region was Frieza's little pet project, and they had no interest in continuing his dealings with those filthy monkeys. Cooler closed his eyes as his smile widened. Well, his father was out of the way now, and he was determined to make the monkeys pay for their defiance.

He sized up the female that was before him. An unusual specimen, this one. The hair, the eyes, the height, all different than usual. But she was clearly important to the monkeys.

The creature spoke up. "Shall I kill her?" he asked, forcing her on to her back, the needle on his tail poised to strike at her throat.

"No. I need a messenger, after all." Cooler looked down at the prone female. "You, my dear, shall have the pleasure of being my messenger. You are to tell your people that their defiance will not be tolerated any longer. They shall soon return to their place as my family's servants. And then they'll know the TRUE meaning of suffering!"

She looked up at him, her eyes shining with tears as she weakly nodded. The creature, however, never took his eyes off the Saiyan beneath him as he spoke. "You say there are more of these… things?"

Cooler rolled his eyes at the creature before him; he may have been an excellent assassin, but he seemed somewhat dense. "Of course there's more. An entire planet, full of slaves and warriors that will soon be catering to my every whim."

At this revelation, the creature seemed to tense up for a moment, remaining completely still. Finally, he withdrew his tail, eliciting a sigh of relief from the female beneath him. Suddenly, he placed a large tridactyl foot and wrapped its appendages around her head. Cooler's face was that of confusion as the creature began to chuckle slightly as he applied pressure. His eyes widened with shock as he realized: this creature was disobeying his order; he was going to kill her.

"STOP!" he cried.

The creature began to apply more pressure, his laughter mingling with the screams of the female, relishing the feeling of her skull beginning to cave in under his foot. As the pressure increased, so did his laughter, until it finally reached an ear-splitting, insane screech. The female gave one last scream before her head quite literally caved in under the pressure, bits of grey matter scattering across the ground and splattering her murderer's face. The creature licked the gore that ran down his face as he stepped over her still-convulsing, headless body.

Cooler became utterly enraged. Under any other circumstance, he would have admired this form of execution, but this creature had ignored a direct order. That was inexcusable. "What do you think you're doing?!" He was compelled to take a step backward as the creature eyed him with that same murderous gleam in his eyes. "I gave you a direct order! You were not to kill her, she was-" He didn't get any further as the creature's needle-like tail was lodged in his throat, and the creature smiled at the look of pure horror that was on his victim's face. Cooler managed to gasp out, "B-but… I'm your … master…"

The creature's eyes narrowed. "I just wanted to thank you, _master,_" he spat, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "You've done so much for me. You freed me from that cage where I was imprisoned, you brought me to this planet, and you even provided me some playmates with which to amuse myself. And now I find out there's an entire planet of these things with which to play. For that, I am appreciative." He then retracted his tail from his victim's neck with a sharp grunt, letting him fall to the ground as the blood escaped his neck. "But you forgot one very important thing, fool." He proceeded to lick the blood from his tail as he leaned down and looked into Cooler's dying eyes.

"Cell has no master."

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Juuhachi sighed as she walked with her father toward the throne room of the palace. She absolutely hated these formal affairs. For one thing, she always felt awkward when they introduced her father and her as 'Lord Daifu and his daughter, the Lady Juuhachi'. It was bad enough BEING nobility, much less being reminded of it every time she went to one of these things. But, since she was unmated, she was required by law to attend such events with her father.

They entered the ornate throne room and she rolled her eyes as they were announced. Daifu noticed this and sighed. He wouldn't have brought her with him, as he knew how she hated appearing in public, but the law was the law; no one seemed interested in his daughter, and those who did were always rejected. 'I suppose she'll know when she meets him', he thought.

As the two made their way to their seats in the front row, Juu's eyes settled on the second reason of her hatred of these events. Prince Vegeta. There he sat on his throne next to his father's, a smug look on his face after his triumphant return, his ever bare forehead blinding her as it reflected the light in the room. He seemed aware of this, as he tilted his head until it shined right into her eyes. She gave a low growl; he knew how much that trait annoyed her.

As time went by, more of the nobility filed into the room and the proceedings were soon underway. King Vegeta entered the room as all present stood as a sign of respect until he took his seat upon his throne. Many noticed, for the umpteenth time, the family resemblance between King and Prince; the latter being a carbon copy of his father; the same hair, same shape of the face, even the same ego. Though the Prince was a bit shorter than his father, perhaps a genetic contribution from his mother, and lacked his father's goatee that he'd sported for years now. Apparently the prince had no affinity for facial hair.

After the procession had died down, the formal greetings taken place, and Prince Vegeta's military review had been completed, at which time he told them how pathetic they were that a mere group of four humans had been able to hold them off and even kill their commander, the King spoke.

"My people, today is a blessed day. Today we celebrate the safe return of our sons and daughters from their duties abroad. We celebrate the bountiful harvest they have returned with. But most of all, today we celebrate the anniversary of our freedom!

"As many of you know, today marks the twenty fifth anniversary of Frieza's destruction. For many years, we were forced to go on raids and purges on the whim of a tyrant. For too long we suffered under his heel. Then, one day, we watched in awe as his ship was mysteriously destroyed while in orbit, freeing us from that maniac forever!"

Juu snorted at that last statement. Everyone else may have been so willing to forget what had really happened in order to satisfy the King's ego, but she wasn't. She knew who was responsible for that event. But it seemed almost everyone else on the planet was more than willing to forget, as they applauded, cheering like mad. She even noticed, with a great amount of disgust, that his own son seemed to be one who was.

The King continued. "Now, we are free; free to do what we choose. Free to reap the bounty of our own labors, not having to share the spoils with a petty tyrant that held an impossibly high debt over our heads. Now, this is our world again! Go forth, my people, and rejoice!"

The crowd began another bout of wild cheering, even giving the King a standing ovation. He stood and waved one final time to his subjects before preparing to leave in preparation for one of the many ceremonies that would take place that night. He was stopped short, however, as Prince Vegeta stood and called out to his father. "Before you go, father, I have a gift for you."

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Chi-Chi was shoved rather roughly into the kitchen area by a strong armed female guard, her black hair flying into her face. "Get in there, wench! It's time you receive your duties for your stay here."

Chi-Chi's only response was a rather rude and unladylike gesture, which earned her another slap across

the face. She let out a growl. What was it with these people and slapping? Finally, she resigned herself to getting in line with the rest of the slave girls. The same female guard went down the line, stopping at each girl and assigning them chores. "You better remember 'em, too," she said. I ain't gonna give 'em out again. If you aren't doing what you're supposed to be doing, you will be killed. Is that understood?"

A small chorus of yeses came from the girls as the guard continued down the line. She stopped in front of a blue-haired girl, who Chi-Chi noticed looked uncannily like Bulma. The guard gave her one look and said "You're on floor scrubbing duty."

The girl let out a small squeal of dismay. "Floors?! Yuck, I can't do that! They're all icky and stuff! I won't you can't-" she was silenced from speaking any further when a large hole appeared in her midsection. She looked down at the wound, a shocked expression on her face, before collapsing onto the floor in a heap. Two other guards came out from the hall to drag the body from the room as the first guard proceeded to lower her hand from its previous position.

"Anyone else care to complain about their tasks? No? Good." She started down the line again, a smug expression on her face. When she finally reached Chi-Chi, her face broke out into a grin. "Oh, I have something _very _special planned for you. You get deliver the meals to the deepest cell in the dungeons." She lowered her voice to sound as intimidating as possible. "Only the worst criminal on the planet are kept in that cell. What's more, you get to feed him. That should be fun, huh?"

Chi-Chi didn't let it show, but she was intimidated. As bad as these people were, she could only imagine how bad their WORST criminal was. And she had to sit in his cell… and feed him, no less! She was pulled over to a table area to a tray laden with an unnatural portion of food; three people couldn't finish that much food! The guard noticed the shocked expression on her face. "That's right, wench. You get to stay with him until he eats it all. Every. Last. Bite. Four times a day. Just consider yourself lucky that he's on half rations. Now get started!" With that, the guard thrust the tray into her hands and pushed her to the door that led to the dungeon. Before she could enter, however, another guard came out and called the guard that was with Chi-Chi. "Hey, you two! Get in here; all personnel are required to watch the vidscreens by order of the Prince."

The female with Chi-Chi groaned and pulled Chi-Chi with her back to the kitchen to see what all the fuss was about. Chi-Chi did her best to block out what was going on; mostly just the King prattling on about today being some sort of holiday or something. Then she heard something that caught her attention: "Before you go, father, I have a gift for you."

Those words seemed to draw her in, and she listened intently to what he would say next.

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Vegeta stood in confidence, enjoying the fact that everyone in the room seemed to be anxious as to what he had gotten for his father that was important enough to give at an assembly. He waited a few moments more before he spoke.

"As you know, thanks to our COMPLETELY INEPT military, a small group of humans managed to hold our people at bay during our invasion, even managing to kill several of our people, including the commander of the mission, Nappa. No small task, even though the fool was a blundering idiot. They forced me to take my elite guard and attack them myself. I regret to inform our people that I was in fact the only one that managed to survive that encounter.

"But, I have not returned empty-handed. As you can tell, we were clearly successful in our mission and the pathetic band was destroyed.

"All save one."

Vegeta motioned to the guards by the door, who began to open it. He turned to face the King, a vicious smirk on his face.

"Father, I present you with your gift!"

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Chi-Chi began to watch with feverish interest as the large wooden doors began to slowly creak open. She somehow knew what was on the other side of the door, but was in no way prepared for what she saw and had to cover her mouth to keep from screaming. Finally, regaining some of her composure, she managed to quietly choke out a single word amongst the many hoots and jeers coming from the guards in the room.

"Krillin?"

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Juuhachi was trying her best to hide it, but she was sick to her stomach at the sight before her. There, at the end of the aisle, stood the human she'd subconsciously come to think of as hers. The little man was bruised all over; one of his eyes was completely swollen shut. He'd been stripped of his shirt, and she could see the numerous bruises and cuts that were still quite fresh; she even saw some burns from a shock prod being jabbed into him more times than she cared to count. She then realized: he hadn't looked like this when she'd seen him not more than an hour before. Just what had they done to him in that short a time?

As he was forced down the aisle between the rows of seats, the many nobles and soldiers in the room began to mock him, laughing at his inability to fight back. Occasionally, someone would throw something at him, eliciting a cheer from the other people in the room. The guards noticed this and once again began to jab him with their prods, causing the crowd of so-called nobility to cheer even louder.

Juu turned to her father, silently begging for him to do something to stop this. Daifu looked at his daughter's eyes and saw tears there, threatening to fall; a shock in and of itself. He lowered his head and shook it sadly. Not even he could do something to intervene that wouldn't be suicide.

She turned her attention back to the little man before her. He had finally reached the end of the aisle and was forced to his knees in front of the thrones, silent tears streaming down his face. This was nothing short of utter humiliation. She looked up and saw both Vegeta and his father sitting on their thrones with smirks on their faces. This was disgusting; how could anyone enjoy something like this? It took everything she had to keep from rushing up there and slapping the King as he began to laugh.

"This?! This is the human that gave you us so much trouble? I think I shall have to begin a stricter training program for our troops! This is embarrassing!" He finally began to calm his bout of merriment and spoke to the man in front of him. "What is your name, scum?"

When the man refused to answer, the Prince jumped up from his throne and grabbed him by the throat, lifting him into the air. "My father asked you a question, freak! WHAT?! IS?! YOUR?! NAME?!"

The little man gave a few sputters before finally managing to choke out his name. "K-K-Krillin."

Vegeta laughed and released Krillin's throat, dropping him on the floor and proceeding to spit on him before climbing back into his throne. "I wouldn't wish that name on a Namek."

The King scrutinized the man that Juu now knew as Krillin with a small smirk on his face. He turned to the Prince. "Tell me, son. What were his crimes?"

Juu felt her eyes go wide. It was bad enough that they had humiliated him in public. Now they felt the need to put him through a mockery of a trial.

Vegeta turned to his father. "He is being charged with the murder of at 30 Saiyans at the hands of him and his cohorts, numerous acts of terrorism and treason against the Saiyan Empire."

The King smiled and looked down at Krillin. "Well, do you deny these charges?"

Krillin didn't even raise his head to look at them. Why bother? It's not like it would make a difference.

The King settled back in his seat. "I'll take that as a no, then. Very well. My son, deliver your ruling."

Vegeta was inclined to have him thrown into the deepest cell in the dungeon with that fool Kakarot, when he noticed something in front of him. That little freak was glaring at him. And, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that the Yellow Freak was giving him the same look. 'Well,' he thought to himself, 'it seems Daifu's spawn has an affinity for the midget. Time to kill two birds with one stone.'

He turned back to his father. "For such acts, there can only be one punishment."

Juuhachi's eyes flew wide. 'NO! PLEASE, NO!'

Vegeta noted her reaction and continued. "For his crimes, this human shall be put to death!"

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Chi-Chi couldn't hold her tears in anymore as the others in the room began to cheer. They only friend that she had left on this planet was going to die. Now, the one thing she had begun to fear was going to come true.

She was alone.

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The crowd in the throne room had begun to go wild, making Vegeta quite pleased with his descision. His father, on the other hand, had another idea. He raised a hand to quiet the crowd before speaking.

"Now, now, Vegeta. Surely you won't begrudge your father the pleasure of enjoying his gift before you kill it?"

Vegeta raised an eyebrow at his father's comment. What exactly was the old man planning now? "What do you mean?"

The King grinned wickedly at his son. "I mean, son, that he will die. But that doesn't mean we can't all enjoy it."

Vegeta returned his father's smile. 'Still crafty, I see. For an old man.'

The King turned his attention to his people. "He will indeed die, but not here." He raised one hand and waved the guards to take him away, that same grin on his face. "To the arena."

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_Well, this chapter was considerably longer than my others. I'm quite proud of this one. Now, as for the important note:_

_Many of you know that I'm going to be writing a sequel to 'One Good Reason', and that the central character will be an OC. You also know that I asked the readers who I should pair him with: Bulla or Pan? So far, I've gotten people asking for both, but they give either no reasoning behind their choice, or a very tiny one. I still want opinions, as I value them, but I need a compelling argument as to why I should use that girl in order to sway me. So please, respond._

_Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this and I hope to update soon. PLEASE REVIEW!!_


	4. Chapter 4

Fulfillment

_Hello, people! I'm back! And typing on my sister's laptop, which is why my format may seem different. I'm gonna have one heck of a time posting this sucker, since this computer has no net access. Basically, I have to type this on here, save it to a disc, take the disc up to my other computer (currently occupied by my mother and sister's college classes), run a spell-check on it, and then post it! OY! But, I need to update this, since I know that people have been waiting for this for quite a while, so I figured I'd better write it! What's it been, two and a half weeks since I updated? Oh, and I know I promised some people two chapters for the long wait, but I decided to run them together in a kind of uberchapter. Well, here it is!_

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**Chapter 4**

Bulma sat back on the couch in the living room of her new 'home' and rubbed furiously at her temples, trying to relieve herself of the stress headache currently having its way with her. The trip over to this world had been stressful enough, but then she was ripped away from her friends and given, of all things, a 'third-class citizenship', which was to say about two steps above a slave, and all because she was a "specimen of superior intellect, but inferior strength". Huh, if she ever got her hands on one of them, she'd sure show them how 'inferior' she was! She was then loaded onto a wagon considerably more comfortable than the carts her friends had been shipped off to market in and pulled to a somewhat small dwelling that was attached to a fairly large laboratory facility. She hated to admit it, but she had been impressed; she'd always figured these guys to be all about brute strength, to be barbarians. Never in a million years would she have thought they'd pay this much attention to the scientific realm.

Upon entering her home, she was greeted by the most wonderful sight she'd ever seen. There, standing in the middle of the living room, was her father. At first she didn't believe it, but there he was; same blue eyes, same gray-white hair, he had even managed to hold on to his cat! The realization finally sinking in, she had rushed into her father's arms and allowed herself to cry for the first time in months, soaking in her father's comforting embrace. But her relief was short lived, as her father then told her the news that he knew would break her heart. Her mother...

Bulma had known that one of the Saiyans' ships had been destroyed. Space pirates were assumed responsible, some of Frieza's rabble that weren't content to just go about their business and leave the rest of the galaxy alone. But, now she knew what happened, she knew that her mother had been on that ship. She was dead.

To add to her troubles, she'd just seen that broadcast and witnessed that mockery of a trial. Once again, she witnessed one of the people she cared about the most die; granted, he wasn't dead yet, but there was no way Krillin would survive that arena, whatever it was, not in his condition. They'd be sure to have it rigged, anyway. Even THEY weren't stupid enough to risk the possibility of him winning, not when it was their intention to humiliate him before killing him in a most painful way.

And now she was being confronted by a rather large Saiyan guard whose attitude was doing nothing to help her mood. "Do you understand your duties, woman?" he asked.

Bulma raised her head up to look at him. "Yeah, I'm supposed to find some way to make your people stronger." So much for her previous theory of the Saiyans not being barbaric. The only reason they had their scientists was to find ways to increase their power. Well, at least they were smart enough to know where the real power was.

The Saiyan smirked at her. "Don't forget, this is by order of the Prince himself. If you mess this up, you might just find your privileges revoked." He then leaned down and whispered in her ear. "And should that happen, there's a special place in the harem for you."

Bulma shoved him away from her and made a face. "Don't you worry; it'll be done before the month is out. And if you EVER try that again, I'll report you."

The Saiyan laughed. "Right, and who are they going to believe? Certainly not some human that was granted third-class status. I could take you right now and no one would make so much as a sound. But then I risk the Prince's displeasure, and believe me, when he gets unhappy, the entire population suffers." He then headed for the door, calling over his shoulder. "Remember, woman: you only have until the end of the month. The Prince will not grant an extension."

Bulma grumbled as she headed into her bedroom to change her clothes. She had a lot of work to do.

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Chi-Chi was trembling as she made her way down a darkened corridor that was lit only by a strange glowing sphere that had been placed on the food tray she was carrying. Apparently, her duties had started immediately following the so-called trial. As she hadn't been aware of that, she hadn't gotten started, which had earned her a slap across the face. Again, what was it with these people and slapping?! But now, she had to go and feed this prisoner who was supposed to be the worst of the lot and, having seen the other prisoners and enduring the catcalls, jeers and occasional grabbing as she passed, she really didn't want to meet the one that supposedly put these guys to shame!

This whole situation was ridiculous. Back home, she wouldn't have had to put up with this. She was a princess, for crying out loud! Of course, back home she was more than strong enough to handle any sort of thug that tried to mess with her. Here, on the other hand, she was considerably weaker compared to these Saiyans.

It was then that her imagination began to run wild. What if this guy was allowed to roam free in his cell? What if he tried to kill her? Or worse, what if he tried to have his way with her? Much as she hated to admit it, she wasn't able to defend herself here, and if he should decide...

She paused as she had finally reached the cell where her 'charge', as her supervisor had put it, was being held. She steeled herself as she prepared to enter. She didn't know if this guy was going to try anything, but she did know that she wasn't going to let him do it without a fight! But, as soon as she placed her hand on the door handle, she could hear the rattling of chains. 'Well,' she thought, 'at least he's chained up.' Soon after she could hear a voice call out. "Who's there?!"

She opened the door and entered the cell to find this prisoner sitting in what had to be a very uncomfortable position, his wrists and ankles bound by chains that wouldn't allow him more than a three foot radius for movement. His hair seemed to be covered in grease and his eyes were closed tightly as if in pain. She then realized that he probably hadn't been in any real sort of light for quite some time. He was probably having a hard time adjusting.

She took the opportunity to look around the cell and was shocked; back on earth, this sort of treatment would've been considered extremely inhumane. The cell couldn't have been more than ten feet in either direction, and the ceiling couldn't be more than a few inches above her head. There were absolutely no windows; the only thing that kept him from going completely blind was a small slit along the ceiling, which allowed light from one of the upper rooms to filter in. Chi-Chi had to wonder what exactly this guy had done to deserve this.

After a little while, he managed to open his eyes and look at her. and asked, "Who are you?"

For some reason, she didn't feel as though this guy was dangerous. He seemed almost too... innocent, too nice. When she looked into his eyes, they weren't the hardened eyes of a vicious criminal. They were still innocent. Innocent and filled with hurt. She felt she could trust him, at least enough to know he wouldn't try anything.

"I'm Chi-Chi," she finally replied.

'Chi-Chi? That's not a Saiyan name,' he thought. "Are you... human?"

"Yeah. Why?"

He hung his head slightly. "I'm sorry about... what happened. They never should've taken you like that. It wasn't-" he stopped suddenly and sniffed the air. "Hey, is that food?! I'm starving!"

Chi-Chi was stunned. First off, he had actually apologized for what his people had done, and then he had shifted topics in the blink of an eye! She blinked a few times before regaining her composure. "Umm... yes. I'm the one that's in charge of feeding you." She sat down next to him. "But first, you tell me your name."

"No, first you may not want to sit in my... bathroom spot."

Chi-Chi jumped up and nearly dropped the tray she was holding on the floor, trying desperately not to be sick.

"Sorry," he said, "I probably should've warned you."

She calmed herself down and managed to force out a smile. "No that's fine." She pointed to a spot on the other side of him. "Is it safe to sit there?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah, sure."

She sat down again and asked. him. "Now, what's your name?"

"I'm Kakarot."

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Juuhachi couldn't take anymore of this disgusting display. As the other nobles began to file out of the room toward the arena, she stormed up to the thrones, ignoring her father's warnings, fully intent on giving that pathetic little worm a piece of her mind. She was stopped short by a rather strong hand gripping her arm. She turned to face her assailant and found herself face to face with Raditz. "Well, well," he said. "Long time no see. What, may I ask, do you think you're doing?"

Juu wrenched her arm out of his grasp and scowled at him. "How dare you lay a hand on me?! What gives you the right to-?"

"Not that it's any of your business, but I happen to be a part of the Prince's personal guard. Now, I'll ask you again: what are you doing?"

"What I do is none of your business!" Her face became a mixture of anger and disgust. "That arrangement ended over a year ago."

Raditz lowered his voice a bit. "What's your problem? I don't seem to recall you complaining about a thing during our time together."

"Our 'time together' was the worst mistake I ever made. I should've listened to my brother; I never should have gotten involved with you! You're nothing but a lying, manipulative, back-stabbing traitor! The only reason my father tried to arrange our bonding was because of your father, and by then it was over!"

He smirked at her. "Over, eh? I bet all I have to do is snap my fingers and you'll come running. I mean, who else is going to take a freak like you?"

She reeled back and slammed a fist into his face and was shocked to see that he wasn't all that fazed. In fact, he began laughing. "Or I could always wait until the next full moon. Then, you won't be able to resist me, whore that you are!"

She pulled back to hit him again only to find her fist caught behind her. She whirled around, fully intent on attacking whoever was interfering with her plan to see her father, a look of extreme displeasure on his normally smiling face. "Juuhachi! That's enough! While we are in public, you WILL conduct yourself as a lady, is that understood?!" Daifu then turned his attention to Raditz. "And YOU will stop bothering my daughter! She made it VERY clear that she wants nothing more to do with you, yet you will not leave her alone!"

Raditz lowered his head in a forced gesture of respect. "I'm sorry, sir. I didn't mean to-"

"You know, she didn't have a moment's peace until the day you left!" Daifu then motioned for him to move aside. "Now if you'll please move, we have an audience with the King."

Raditz did as he was told and the two made their way up to the throne area. "Now see," said Daifu to his daughter, "if you'd just listened to me, we'd have gotten to speak to them without the unpleasentries back there. It pays to listen to your old father at times."

Juu rolled her eyes. "Yes father, I admit, you were right. Now can we please just get this over with? If I have to be near those two for long, I think I'll snap."

They finally arrived before the two royals, and Daifu and the King began to trade the traditional banter about various things including economics, the weather, simple things of that nature, while their children engaged in a rather heated staring contest. Juu felt an enormous urge to go over and kill him AND his stupid hairdo, when she heard her father's conversation with the King take a more interesting turn.

"Far be it from me to argue with you, sire, but I do feel that this is a little extreme. I mean, death for an action that amounts to little more than fighting an enemy army-"

"Fighting an enemy army?!" The King appeared ready to fly into a rage. "This wasn't a war, it was conquest! The fight was over before it began! Their race was so weak; it should've been over in half that time! And what happens? A group of four humans killed Nappa and his guards, not to mention my son's entire elite guard! Don't you realize how humiliating that is for us?! We're going to be the laughingstock of the entire galaxy!!"

"Not to mention the fact that we'd be doing the humans a favor," the Prince added. "I know I wouldn't want to be represented by something that ugly!"

Juuhachi couldn't take it anymore. "Oh, please! The only reason you're doing this is to satisfy your own royal egos! You just can't stand the fact that you were nearly beaten by a human, so you're going to get rid of the evidence! You people make me sick!"

Daifu cringed at his daughter's words. "Juuhachi-!"

She turned to face her father. "No! I'm not just going to sit here and let them do this, and if Juunana were here, he'd agree with me!"

Prince Vegeta smirked slightly at the mention of that name. "Speaking of..."

Juu turned to look at him. "What?"

Vegeta turned away and left the room. "Why don't you tell them, Father? In the meantime, I'll be waiting at the arena." He turned back to face the others one last time. "I'm sure that I'll see you there, since you're just DYING to see what happens to the little freak." He shot off one last smirk and then left.

Daifu turned slowly to face the King, a large pain beginning to form in his chest. He dreaded what the King would say, feared the worst about what he was about to hear. The look that appeared on the Kings face told him all he needed to know. Juuhachi, on the other hand, seemed to need a bit more information. "Father, what's wrong?"

King Vegeta looked over at the young girl. "I'm sorry to tell you this, young lady, but your brother... your brother is dead. We received a message from the Vergassans just a moment ago. Apparently, they found him and his entire crew completely mutilated and his ship missing. They're still trying to determine who's responsible, but..." The King trailed off and shifted his gaze to Daifu. "I'm so sorry, old friend."

Daifu stood rooted to the spot as silent tears streamed down his face. His son, his heir, his child was dead, and the rest of his son's family as well. It was almost too much for him to take in. But as hard a time as he was having with this news, he knew who would take it the hardest. Sure enough, he saw that Juuhachi was in a state of shock. Her brother...dead? It couldn't be. Juunana couldn't die; he was too strong for anyone to kill! It wasn't fair! She was pulled from her thoughts when she felt her father's hand on her shoulder. "Come, Juuhachi, let's go home."

Those words seemed to stir something within her and a memory of only a few moments before; the Prince's departing words, they were a challenge to prove whether or not she was weak. She would prove to him that she was strong. She would go to that arena, and she wouldn't shed a single tear, not at the news that had reached her or at the no doubt inevitable outcome at the arena. "No, father. We promised we'd be at the arena, and so we shall." Her father was shocked at the new, cold tone in her voice, but it didn't matter right now. She was going to prove to that scumbag that she was stronger than he thought and he'd never be able to call her weak again.

Not much longer than five minutes later, they were seated in the King's private booth at the arena, which, Juuhachi noted with a tinge of disgust, was conveniently located close to the palace. She took stock of her surroundings: in their seating area, there were several large, plushy chairs and two ornate thrones only slightly less immaculate than the ones at the palace, though the two occupants of said thrones still wore that same wicked smirk that they had earlier as they eagerly awaited the start of what they had simply dubbed 'the games'. Various other nobles occupied the other chairs in the booth and they also seemed anxious to see the little human die. 'No,' she thought, 'not just any little human. My little human.'

It was strange, the way she'd come to think of him as hers. She couldn't quite remember when she'd come to think of him as such, but she was almost certain it was when she'd first heard stories of him, terribly exaggerated stories of this group of large, unstoppable humans. At first, it had been a mere fascination with these 'super-humans', but over time, as the stories became a bit more clear, she began to see these humans as they really were; just members of a race under siege trying their best to fight back. Of course, having access to the palace archives helped her to see past the propaganda that the royals expected the people to swallow. Among these were descriptions of those that had stood against the Saiyans: a tall, three-eyed human, a small human that the report noted looked remarkably like the denizens of Miiyok, a race of being that even outshone the Saiyans in the area of longevity, an old man that was apparently their teacher, and finally, what was deemed to be an ugly deformity of the human race. That was a mystery in and of itself; stereotypically, a hero was supposed to be this handsome, dashing figure, yet this one was, she had to admit, a bit unattractive. But despite all this, she felt drawn to him in some strange way. Especially when she had seen him, when she'd seen the way he'd looked, how the females of his race had tried to distance themselves from him- all save one, anyway.

Another thought then struck her: suppose that he had a mate? What then? Would that have any sort of effect on how she felt, or was it even that sort of attraction?

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To say Chi-Chi was shocked was an understatement. In the short time she'd been down in this cell, Kakarot had already eaten almost all the food on his tray, and he was STILL hungry! As it turned out, he was indeed on half rations, and was even a bit malnourished, all in an attempt to keep him weak enough to prevent escape. Well, it certainly was working, as he'd been down here for almost a year.

"So," he asked her after swallowing a mouthfull of food, "did you come here with family?"

"No. My family died during the invasion."

Kakarot felt like slapping himself for asking that question. "Oh. I'm sorry."

"It's alright," she replied. "You couldn't have known. So, how about you, do you have family?"

Chi-Chi was startled as Kakarot's eyes seemed to burn at the thought. "If it's all the same to you, I'd rather not talk about my family right now."

"Alright, that's fine. I was just-"

Both of them were startled by the sound of the door swinging open and in strolled that long haired guard that had brought her to the palace. The words that came from his mouth, however, were shocking and unexpected. "Hello, brother. I've brought you a little someth-" He cut his words short as he became aware of the cell's other occupant and burst into a fit of laughter. "OH, I DON'T BELIEVE IT! You got stuck with that crazy earth-whore?! Well, seems I can tell the future, doesn't it?!"

Kakarot's hands balled up into fists as he struggled with all his might to keep from attacking the one before him. "What do you want, Raditz?"

Raditz but on a fake smile that was so believable that it almost had Chi-Chi fooled. "Why, I'm just trying to bring you a little gift. What, I can't bring presents to my poor baby brother?" He tossed an electronic device about the size of a tissue box at the two of them. "The arena events are going to be broadcast. Even I'M not cruel enough to deny a Saiyan the opportunity to see a fight, no matter how short it may be." He seemed to find that quite entertaining and burst into another fit of laughter as he walked out the door and slammed it behind him.

Kakarot scratched his head. "What was so funny?"

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Juuhachi had given up sitting in her chair and began to pace back and forth in the booth. She just wanted to get this event going and be done with it. As if in answer to her silent wish, a loud horn was sounded from somewhere in the upper area of the arena and a ridiculous announcer strutted out into the center of the arena dressed in bright, flamboyant armor. He raised his hands up before speaking. "People of Vegeta-sei! We are gathered here today to witness the carrying out of the sentence passed by our great King Vegeta-" and here he paused to allow the almost rehearsed cheers to lift up from the crowd before continuing- "on the human known only as Krillin for his crimes against the Empire!" Juu rolled her eyes at the again expected boos and taunts that came from the crowd.

She perked up a bit, however, when she saw that Krillin was now in the center of the arena as well. She also noted how some of his wounds seemed to be much better than before. They had probably used some new healing device that the military had developed. She also noticed that they had stripped off the remnant of his shirt and blushed slightly at the sight. Realizing that her father seemed to be scrutinizing her very closely, she looked away quickly and waited for the games to begin.

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Krillin was awestruck by what was happening. One minute he was on display before a crowd of angry Saiyans and the next thing he knew, he was carted off to this arena and being coated in medicinal herbs and scanned by this weird little device that seemed to accelerate their effect. Now, here he was, standing in the middle of the arena next to someone that seemed to be the Saiyan Elton John spout off about all the evil things he'd supposedly done. Finally, the announcer left the arena and a large door opened on the other end and a hideous green creature came running out. "What IS that thing?!"

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Juu turned and looked at the smirking Prince Vegeta. "A Saibaman? You promise everyone he'll die and all you send out is a Saibaman? What's your game, jerk?"

He simply stared down into the arena, watching the events that were about to unfold. "All, in good time, freak. All in good time."

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"Kakarot, what IS that thing?"

He managed to pull himself away from the screen and look at Chi-Chi. "That's a Saibaman. They were created by some scientist a long time ago to be used as cannon fodder, basically. They could either weaken a strong enemy or destroy a weaker one that wasn't worth risking any actual troops for." He noticed the worried expression on her face. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"N-n-nothing," she replied, trying to hide the worry on her face. "It's just... Krillin's one of the only friends I have left."

"So HE'S the guy that gave my brother and Vegeta so much trouble?"

"Uh-huh."

Kakarot smiled. "Well, I like him already! Don't worry about him. If he's that strong, he should be able to handle a FEW Saibamen with no trouble."

Chi-Chi just nodded as she watched the screen. 'I sure hope you're right.'

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Krillin stood his ground, waiting for his strange opponent to make the first move. He didn't have to wait long, however, as the thing rushed at him and swung a clawed hand toward his face, missing only by a few centimeters. 'Wow. That thing's faster than I thought!'

He flipped backward to put some space between him and the creature, only to find the gap closed almost before he was back on his feet, and he was forced to raise his hands to block as a flurry of blows flew from the creature, which emitted a series of sharp shrieks as it attacked. Krillin did note one fatal flaw, however; this creature was spending so much time attacking his upper body that his legs were free to attack. He quickly swung his leg upward and slammed the creature into the air. He then fired off a ki blast almost immediately afterward and the creature exploded into a puff of green smoke.

"What, that's it? That was supposed to kill me? That was too easy!"

His victory was short lived as another three of the creatures entered through the same door and immediately rushed to attack. Krillin found himself backed into a corner as he was forced to block blows aimed at both his upper and lower body while still having to worry about the other one, who seemed to be standing behind the others, just watching. Krillin was pulled from his observation by a rather painful blow landing in his gut and he realized that this batch was considerably stronger than the last one he fought. His eye wandered back to the odd one out and noticed that he seemed to be focusing for an attack. Krillin timed his movement just right and leapt out of the way just as the creature's head split open and a green liquid flew out from the opening, coating one of the others and dissolving it almost instantly.

'Whoa, I didn't know these things could shoot acid!'

He then noted that the rate at which the creature's wound closed was slow and decided to take advantage of the situation. Using the other creature as a springboard, he leapt into the air and fired a succession of ki blasts into the opening in the thing's head, causing him to explode.

Krillin smiled and turned to face the last remaining creature. It may have been considerably more powerful than the last one, but he could certainly take out this last one. But, as he rushed to attack, he noticed than it began to glow. He barley managed to throw himself out of the way before the creature exploded, leaving behind a fairly good-sized crater.

Krillin pulled himself off the ground with a grunt and thanked his lucky stars. If that had hurt this much from just the shockwave, he could only imagine what would've happened had he been at the epicenter.

He bent over and placed his hands on his knees, trying desperately to catch his breath. He thought that maybe, just maybe, it was over. The creaking open of those large wooden doors, however, dispelled any hope he may have had of being done, and he stood to face his next opponent. Much to his horror, no fewer than ten of those same green creatures marched through that door into the arena and the crowd erupted into applause.

'This borders on overkill,' he thought as he straightened himself. Common sense made him well aware that he couldn't fight them all at once, especially now that he knew of their special abilities. There was only one thing left for him to do. 'Darn it, I promised myself I wouldn't use this yet!'

He began to concentrate and a large ki ball began to form in his hands. The crowd became hushed as they watched this strange new ability unfold. Opening his eyes, he brought his hands upward and the ball rushed straight up into the air, hanging for a brief moment before Krillin motioned for the ball to drop. As it did, it split into several smaller balls and each collided with its target, destroying it instantly.

When the dust finally cleared, the crowd was amazed to see nothing else in the arena but scorched ground. The reactions were mixed; some booed and hissed, some began to cheer, and most just sat in pure shock at what had just happened.

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Now it was Juuhachi's turn to smirk at Vegeta. "Well, my Prince, it seems that the human has survived your tests. What are you gonna do now?"

Vegeta returned her smirk and allowed himself a slight chuckle. "If you really think it's over, freak, you have another thing coming!" He then pulled what looked like a small remote out of the drawer of the end table next to him and pressed the large button on it. Juu turned her attention to the arena again and watched as the door creaked slowly open. She then gasped at the sight of the thing that walked through the door.

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Chi-Chi was shocked by the monster that walked into the arena. It looked like a giant version of those Saibamen, only more muscular, lacking any sort of a mouth and it was blue.

She turned to look at Kakarot, who only raised his hand. "Before you even ask, I have NO IDEA what that thing is!"

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Krillin was quite intimidated by the monster that stood before him. It looked to be quite a bit more powerful than its smaller cousins he'd faced before. His theory was proved to be correct when the thing rushed straight at his and slammed its fist into the side of his head, sending him flying to the other side of the arena.

Krillin pulled himself off the ground, half expecting the creature to already be towering over him, but to his surprise, it was actually only halfway over to his current position. Apparently this one was only half as fast as the other were. This realization proved costly, however, as it allowed the creature to close the gap and drive its foot into his stomach, causing him to lift into the air. Before gravity could even take effect, he felt the creature's hand close around his neck and hold him into the air as it proceeded to use its free hand to pummel him without mercy.

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Juuhachi slid over in her seat and half whispered to her father. "You have to stop this. It's not fair!"

Daifu took his daughter's hand and squeezed it gently. "I'm sorry, my dear, but I've already done everything I can." A thought suddenly struck him; was Juuhachi somehow infatuated with this human? It didn't seem possible, yet there were signs. The way she looked at him, the way she spoke about him, it all pointed to the same conclusion.

Daifu tried to ignore the nagging feeling, but it wouldn't go away. Besides, what if she DID feel something for him? Even if it was only some passing feeling, he couldn't bear to see his little girl hurt again, not after what had happened to her brother. He leaned forward and began to whisper into the Kings ear. "Pardon me, sire, but I have a proposition for you."

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Krillin could feel his strength slipping slowly away. He knew he couldn't hold up much longer under this kind of beating. He had to take action, and fast. Gathering up his strength, he drove his foot into the creature's midsection several times as hard as he could. The creature dropped him and clutched at its gut and Krillin decided to use this opportunity to put some distance between them.

He skidded to a halt on the other side of the arena and raised a hand into the air. A small, glowing disc appeared above it, growing in speed and size until he finally flung it forward at his enemy. The disc flew forward and sliced an arm off of the creature, followed closely by a second which removed the other arm. Feeling it had no alternative, the creature began to gather energy for a self destruct attack while running toward him. Krillin threw yet another disc at the creature, slicing its head clean off, but instead of dropping to the ground, the thing kept running at him. 'What is this thing made of?!'

He knew that he couldn't let that thing touch him and he had only one option left. He cupped his hands at his side, tips of his fingers pointed to the rear and began to call out.

**KA**

As he did so, a bright blue light began to emit from his hands.

**ME**

The light began to take shape and form into a ball that was nestled perfectly in his hands and began to fluctuate slightly.

**HA**

Vegeta stared at the little human, and began to try to figure out what exactly he was trying to do, when suddenly it became all too clear. "That's impossible!"

**ME**

Kakarot's eyes grew wide. He had no idea what this technique was, but he certainly wanted to learn it!

**HA!**

Krillin thrust his hands forward no more than a foot away from the creature in front of him and a large blue ki wave erupted from the center, completely engulfing the creature. It wasn't too long before the creature had been completely blown apart and the wave receded. Krillin let his hands drop to his sides and began panting again. That last attack had taken everything he had left in him and he was now completely spent. He fell forward to the ground, gasping for air as the entire world went black.

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_Well, that's it for now! Hope you like it and sorry if it stinks. I've had to babysit and cook and such while writing this and it's taken me a grand total of twelve hours! How's THAT for dedicated?! Oh, and when you're done here, go read 'Blood's Song' by Diinya-chan. It's AWESOME!! Well, I'll see you guys next time! Please review!_


	5. Chapter 5

**Fulfillment**

_Hello, fans! I'm baaack! I know I sorta left you hanging there, so I figured it was high time I updated this sucker. Although, it might be short; definitely shorter than the last one, that's for sure. Plus, I've a few announcements to make at the end of the chapter._

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**Chapter 5**

Juuhachi had been ecstatic! Her human had been up against insurmountable odds, yet he still pulled through. Not once had he given up, not once had he retreated. He'd done all but actually spit in Prince Vegeta's eye! That was more than enough to please her, to, in her eyes, avenge her brother's memory. Then she noticed him flat on his face and she began to worry.

It was about that time she noticed her father speaking in hushed tones with the King, as if he were conducting some sort of business dealing. Oddly enough, the King didn't look all too pleased and spoke just loud enough for her to overhear: "You, sir, should not encourage your daughter to consort with the likes of him! If it's company she needs, I'm sure there are plenty of her own race she can be with!"

"But sire," Daifu pleaded, "think on this. In all the years, how many people has my Juuhachi ever taken a shine to? The only friends she's had were her own brother and his mate; she really seemed to get along with that girl. But none of the others will come near her due to her... condition. If she really wants him, I don't have the heart to deny her that one pleasure."

What exactly was her father doing? Whispering about her to the King, acting as if he were ashamed of the way she looked... even her own father thought she was horrid! She turned away from him, tears stinging at her eyes as she looked down at the arena below. She knew it wasn't too much longer until the full moon ceremony would begin, and were she not mated by then, she may not be able to at all. Most Saiyans bonded a while before reaching her age, and she was pushing the limit as it was; only the royal family had the distinct privilege of escaping that fate, or so the theory went.

She felt another pang in her heart. If Juunana were here, he'd know what to do. He and Keya had always been able to advise her, even when she sometimes refused to listen. The results always proved them correct, such as when they'd warned her about that long haired scum that was constantly staring at her whenever she was near. She needed someone like them again, someone who would understand her, accept her. But now, they were... A single tear ran down her cheek as she fixed her gaze at the human being loaded onto a stretcher by a couple of other slaves and her heart seemed to reach out to him. 'You would understand me, wouldn't you? You wouldn't fear me, wouldn't think me a freak. You'd be my friend, wouldn't you?'

He was different, this human. He was like her, feared for what he was, scorned for his appearance. She smiled. He was special. He would understand her, help her like her brother had so many times before. And maybe, just maybe, she could help him, too.

"Juuhachi," her father's gentle voice called out to her. "Juuhachi, I need to talk to you about something."

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Prince Vegeta wasn't sure what the old man was saying to his freak of a daughter and frankly, he didn't care. He was too intensely focused on what had transpired in those final few moments of the games. It was impossible! There was no way he could've fired that thing off without destroying the entire arena. It would've taken at LEAST that much energy to finish off a Mark II in one blast! And with a beam attack, no less! At least, it appeared to be a beam.

But this was an outrage, nonetheless. That... human was to have been killed in the battle, not... not THIS! The little animal had humiliated him, his family... his entire race! He wasn't about to allow this to continue, as he stood and started for the door.

"Vegeta! Where do you think you're going? I did not dismiss you!"

Vegeta didn't turn around as he replied. "I'm not just going to sit here and let this happen, Father. I will defend my- your honor. He must die!"

The King growled slightly. He was slightly inclined to agree with his son on this issue, but there were... mitigating circumstances now. He had made a deal, and now he had to honor it. "I'm sorry, my son, but I cannot allow you to do that."

"And why, may I ask, can't I?"

"Because, my son... he's been sold to Daifu's daughter."

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"WHAT? Father, how could you?! After everything you thought us about slavery, you now contradict yourself by buying one? What were you thinking?!"

"Juuhachi, please. I was only thinking of you." Daifu attempted to reason with her. "I've seen the way you look at that one I know you want him-" Daifu's eyes widened at his own statement. "Well, that sounded different than intended, but the fact remains that you've had you're eye on him since you first heard he existed, to say nothing of when he arrived." He smiled at her. "Besides, this way you can treat him as you wish. He'll be a slave in name only; more of a companion, really. Juuhachi, if we don't take him, he'll be executed by the Prince himself, and you know how he deals with those who humiliate him..."

Juuhachi shuddered at the memory of the executions of those unfortunate enough to incur the Prince's personal wrath. It wasn't a sight one would soon forget and certainly not one she could ever wish on... what was his name again? Krillin, that was it. And she had to admit, she'd been thinking of him as hers for quite some time... Reluctantly, she agreed. "Fine. But I don't want anyone interfering with how I keep him. If he's mine, he's mine. Understand?"

Daifu smiled. He'd spent years learning to read his daughter and he knew, even though she tried hard to hide it, she was happy. VERY happy. "Of course, my dear. Of course. You'll not be harassed for how you deal with him, at least not by anyone I have say over. The Prince I'm not so sure of."

She snorted. "Yeah, well the Prince can kiss my-"

"JUUHACHI! What have I told you about speaking like a lady?"

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, father. I'm sorry. It won't happen again. Jeez, you'd think I killed someone."

Ignoring her remark, her father went to close the deal with the King. Her eyes then wandered to an irate Prince Vegeta, his fists clenching and unclenching as he stared at her. No doubt he was fuming over the fact that he couldn't kill her human. She smiled and made her way toward the door until she was grabbed rather roughly by the arm and forced to face Vegeta, his nostrils flaring as he spoke. "Be glad my father is doing you this favor, wench! Were it not for him, I'd kill that little freak myself!"

She smiled sweetly at him. "Well, it's not up to you, is it?"

He let go of her arm and growled as his eyes flashed dangerously. "You're scum, you know that?! Scum from the day you were born, you freak! You and your family DARE to speak out against my father's wishes, your brother runs and hides from the Purging like a little coward, and now you betray your race in favor of the ugliest excuse for a living thing I've ever seen. I honestly don't know who's more pathetic, you or that coward you call broth-" He was stopped short by a powerful slap to the face.

Vegeta took a step back and raised a fist of his own to retaliate, when he heard the voice of his father ring out. "VEGETA! Stop this! You're acting like a spoiled child!"

"Father, she struck me! I am well within my rights to-"

"And as I see it, she was well within hers! I thought I taught you never to speak to a lady in such a way."

A smirk came across Vegeta's face. "You taught me never to speak to a lady Saiyan that way, Father. What I see before me is a freak of nature that happens to be female, nothing more." With that, he left the booth, mumbling curses under his breath.

Juu tries very hard to keep herself from crying. Not so much for herself, she was used to that sort of treatment. But her brother's memory had been attacked, and she was certain that if Vegeta had anything to do with it, it wouldn't be long until his opinion of Juunana was 'accidentally' leaked to the public.

King Vegeta groaned as he rubbed his temples; all this stress was giving him a headache and his son's attitude certainly wasn't helping him any. "I'm sorry, young lady. My son still has yet to learn that being royal doesn't mean you can do whatever you wish."

"I-I'm fine. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have things to attend to." She bowed to the King slightly and started for home.

When she had left the King turned to her father. "He should be there by the time she gets to her room. Are you certain that's the best place for him? I can't exactly keep people from talking, you know."

Daifu smiled at his daughter's gradually decreasing frame. "No, this will be fine. It's just what she needs, a companion to talk to. Nothing unscrupulous will come of this, I assure you." He gave a small chuckle. "It's not like those two will fall in love at first sight or something."

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She never felt so happy. Well, not for quite a while anyway. She was sure Krillin was dead when he went into that arena, especially when he had to face all those green things at once and then the big blue one... it was nothing short of a miracle! She had been thrilled! Ecstatic! So much so that, in that moment she forgot herself and threw her arms around Kakarot's neck and...

And kissed him full on the lips.

After a moment she realized what she was doing and panicked slightly. She pulled away from him and shuffled a few more inches away from him, her face downcast and her cheeks rapidly going red. What did she just do?! In all her years, she'd never done that to anyone, let alone someone she'd just met earlier that same day! It wasn't proper; it was something the ladies of ill repute did back home. It was... it was...

Kinda nice, actually! Something she wouldn't mind doing again.

It was then she noticed the reaction of the other occupant of the cell. His eyes seemed glazed over and his cheeks the same color as hers. He seemed to have a look of shock, happiness, and confusion as his tail twitched slightly behind him. She waved a hand in front of his face, attempting to get his attention, when he suddenly gasped for air and began stuttering. "I-I... um, that- that w-w-was... uh... um... oh boy! I don't really know what to say. That was unexpected... but nice!" He smiled at her. "I'm glad your friend's O.K., Chi-Chi. Whoa, when I get outa here, you've gotta introduce me to him! He seems pretty neat."

"I'll be sure to do that. If I ever see him again, that is. Or you, for that matter..."

He reached over and took her tiny hand in his. "Chi-Chi, I can promise you this: you'll definitely be seeing me again. You're a special lady and I'm not about to let you go. As for your friend, I'll see about helping you find him, alright?"

Chi-Chi began blushing profusely, when her brain suddenly snapped back into reality. "Wait a second. Are you asking me out?"

Kakarot scratched his head with his free hand. "Huh? 'Asking you out', what's that mean? Is it anything like a courtship ritual?"

"Well, that depends. What's a courtship ritual here?"

He smiled at her again. "A courtship ritual is when you ask someone you really like for permission to court them to see if they're compatible to be your Life Mate."

Chi-Chi tilted her head and squinted slightly. "Life Mate, is that anything like a husband or wife?"

"Um, maybe. A Life Mate is someone that you're bonded with, body and soul for the rest of your life. The bond's so strong that the two can actually hear and see each other's thoughts, if their mate allows it. And usually, when one dies, the other isn't too far behind. It's like the two live and die together."

Chi-Chi's eyes began to water. That was so... so romantic! It was basically her dream, to be married, to have a family. To grow old with the one she loved and then one day go on to be with them forever. It sounded perfect. But, her question still stood. "W-which one is it, then?"

Kakarot's big, dopey smile returned. "Well, I guess it's a courtship ritual, then. That is, if you don't mind courting someone that's confined down here."

Chi-Chi returned the smile as silent tears till cascaded down her cheeks. "I-I'd love to!" She then noticed the time and jumped to her feet, narrowly missing a collision with the low ceiling. "Oh, no! I've gotta go! If I'm late getting back, I'm sure to get ANOTHER slap to the face. I swear, I don't know what it is with you people an-" Her eyes widened as she realized what she had just said. "Oh, I'm so sorry! I wasn't thinking. It's just... well, you're so different, I-"

"Hey, it's alright. I can't exactly say I'm too fond of my own people either." He handed her the glowing sphere that served as her light in the dungeon. "Well, you better get back. I don't want you getting hurt on my account."

She smiled as she took the sphere from him. "Okay. I'll see you tomorrow at the same time, then." She gave him one last smile as she started out the door. "Goodbye."

Kakarot smiled broadly and waved to her. "I'll be looking forward to it. G'bye, Pretty Eyes!"

Chi-Chi sighed dreamily as she practically skipped down the hall of the dungeon, ignoring the same cat calls and jeers she received upon entering that horrid, yet wonderful place. It was strange; this was supposed to be the most horrifying experience of her life and it was still quite unpleasant, yet...

Yet she couldn't be happier.

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Juuhachi walked down the hall of the palace to her room, her heart heavy with Vegeta's earlier words. How could he say that about her brother? He'd been nothing but respectful to him throughout the years, yet all he received was contempt, especially when he'd bonded with Keya. She was different, much like Juu herself was, and Vegeta seemed to be the type of person that couldn't stand anyone who was different than him and he scorned those who did.

She reached into her handbag searching for her key. Stupid annoying thing, she hated having to lug it around every time she went out. Yet, her father insisted she wear something other than he armor when in public to avoid giving anyone an eyeful. A ridiculous notion in her mind. Even if she did walk around with fully exposed legs and form-fitting armor, who in their right mind would even give her a second glance? They all saw her as hideous. Thus the dresses, which she really didn't mind. The bags however, were a nightmare.

Finally finding what she was looking for, she pulled the key from its place in her bag and inserted it into the lock. Upon turning it, however, she noted with some shock that it had already been unlocked. 'What the...? I know I locked this thing when I left!' She opened the door and slowly pushed it open, bracing herself to come face-to-face with whoever had broken into her room. Instead, she was greeted with a sight that made her heart leap like a small child receiving a gift for their birthday. There, lying in her bed, was her human. Her Krillin.

She tip-toed across the floor, trying hard not to wake him as he slept. He looked so peaceful, more so than he had appeared in the entire time she'd seen him. His eyes were closed, but she could still see them, those dark pools filled simultaneously with joy and sorrow, happiness and pain. She noted the many scars he had in various places about his body; some old, some disturbingly new. They were present on his hands, his arms, that very well-sculpted chest of his... she found herself once again blushing at the sight and struggled to regain her composure.

She sat on the edge of the bed and gently ran her fingers through a short crop of hair that was starting to grow and smiled. He was hers now. She could protect him, and in return he could be her friend. She liked that idea. Very much. Overcome by a desire to, she gently leaned down and kissed his forehead.

She pulled back quickly, however, as he began to thrash in his sleep, his eyes whipping open wide with fear. He sat upright as his eyes began to scan the room, dazedly trying to take in his strange new surroundings. Acting mostly on instinct, Juu reached out and pulled him to her, holding him close as he breathed in ragged gasps and, to her displeasure, began to cry softly. He was scared of something. Was it her? Did he too think her that hideous?

Hoping that wasn't the case, she began to rock him slowly, her tail coming around to caress his cheek gently as she whispered, "It's okay, I'm not gonna hurt you. I won't let anyone hurt you anymore. I'll keep you safe, little one."

Krillin pulled away from her and found himself staring into that same pair of hypnotic blue eyes that he had seen earlier that day. It was her, that girl from the wall. She had the same eyes, the same gorgeous face, the same soft blonde hair... "Am I dead?" he asked.

She looked at him, confused. "What do you mean?" She found herself blushing like she never had before at his next statement.

"Well, how else could I be seeing the most beautiful angel in heaven?"

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Somewhere on a planet far away, an entire capital city, an amazing, floating masterpiece of architecture, lay in ruins. The various homes had been completely smashed and places of business were aflame, the resulting light exposing a great deal of corpses that had been completely mutilated. Many had been crushed, smashed, or snapped in half, but still more seemed to have a large puncture wound near a major artery the bodies almost completely drained of fluids. All in all, it was a grimly familiar scene.

One lone survivor was left to witness this carnage, his palace burning brightly behind him. He grasped desperately at the scaly green hand wrapped around his throat, his already bulging, fish-like eyes sticking even further out as his webbed feet kicked at the air. "Please," he begged, "let me go. Why are you doing this? We did n-nothing to deserve this!"

The monster that held him looked up at him with glowing yellow eyes. "I already told you, your majesty. All I wanted from you was the location of the homeworld of a race known as Saiyans. Instead, you refuse to aid me and even order me apprehended." He wagged an index finger at him. "That wasn't very nice of you." He increased the pressure slightly. "Tell me where they are and I'll leave. Simple as that. Now, be a good little fishy and cooperate!"

The king pointed a slimy finger toward the western sky. "That way... they're a two month trip that way! Now p-please... let me- auugghgh!"

Cell continued squeezing until he heard the telltale snapping of bone and dropped the lifeless corpse, kicking it into the sea. "Thank you. And now, I'll keep my part of the bargain." He started down the ruined street, but stopped when her heard the cries of a small child coming from nearby. He smiled that same terrifying grin. "But first," he raised a blood-covered tail and twitched it expectantly, "I think it's time for a little snack."

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_Well, heck of a place to end it, eh? And it seems Krillin stole one of Yamcha's cheesy pick-up lines, which is weird, since he never met him in this story. Actually, he was quite sincere with his last statement. So much for Daifu's prediction, at least at one end. And, for those of you who didn't already know, Cell is a psychotic sadistic, vampiric creature, much as he was in the series, but without the drive to absorb any Androids. Freaky, eh? And where did Vegeta head off to, I wonder? You'll have to come back to find__out!_


	6. Chapter 6

**Fulfillment**

_A big hello again to all the happy people who enjoy this. I just kinda figured that I might as well update this, since you all love it and since I'm sick and can't do much else except sleep and vomit. Yay me! Also, I'd like to take some time for shameless pluggage: For all ye who be K/18 fans, I'd seriously recommend reading my story 'One Good Reason'. I'm told it's quite good Also, I've a comedy series you might enjoy called 'Oookay…' And, I finally posted my Mirai timeline story called 'Escaping Fate' and I think she could use some love. Plus, I've got a G/CC one-shot I put up recently called 'What They Don't Understand' that I SERIOUSLY recommend, even if you're not a G/CC fan. You might find it enlightening. And I know this'll raise some hackles, but I wrote a Krillin/Bulma story called 'Learning to Let Go'. It's nothing real major, just how I think the two came to terms with their emotional states toward one another; sad ending, though._

_And, to plug some others: To give credit where credit is due, I have to let you now exactly what was the source of 75 of my inspiration for writing this. I was inspired to write this after reading 'And Then You'll Know' by the incomparable Deadly Beauty. Seriously, if you like this, hers is probably 100 times better! And, of course, please take the time to read and REVIEW Diinya-chan's story, 'Blood's Song'! If you don't, you don't know what you're missing!_

_Okay, enough with the commercials, time to get down to business. Here goes._

**Chapter 6**

Somewhere in the capital city of Vegeta-sei a lone figure leaned against a wall, hidden from view in a dark alley. This man was no stranger to this place; he'd come here many a time before. He found it helped him to think, to plot against his enemies as he'd done so effectively in the past. It was how he'd acquired his current position of power. That had been enough for a while, but he wanted more; he wanted the throne.

This wouldn't be easy, he knew. Rising to his current position had been no small task. The steps he'd taken to ensure his place had been what some would consider drastic. The lies he'd told, the people he'd manipulated... the ones he'd killed. If all that had been necessary to ensure what he held now, he could only imagine what he would need to do to wear the crown.

But he was more than ready, and he certainly wasn't above anything. All he had to do was bide his time; people could be manipulated, he knew. They were like chess pieces, just waiting for him to move them into position. He just had to wait, to be patient as he maneuvered his little pawns toward his ultimate goal. Patience was something he'd acquired long ago. But he also needed to hold his temper, and there he would no doubt run into trouble.

He could be patient, yes, but when it came to holding his temper when angered, he'd always struggled. If someone interfered with his plans, if someone insulted him in some way, he had a tendency to nearly go ape on them. More than a few had turned up dead because of that. This time, he knew he would have to be careful. He couldn't afford not to be.

There was, however, one mitigating factor in all this. His prize, his queen despised him. She was an unusual creature, the only one he felt worthy to sit by his side, even if she WAS only going to be an ornament for his glory, even if she WAS considered to be below all the others on the planet. Now, he faced competition for her affections, and from that... that THING! That disgusting little worm wasn't worthy to wipe mud from his boots, yet she seemed to want HIM! Well, that creature didn't know who he was messing with.

A smile played across his face as an idea began to form in his mind. It was perfect! He could do what he wished, leave behind whatever mess he wanted and he knew where the blame would fall. They'd blame that freak; he'd be the one to take the fall! He had to remind himself to take it slow, however. Much as it disgusted him, he had to allow the scum to worm his way into his woman's heart. Then, he could execute his plan, thus removing him from the picture and hurting her in one fell swoop. That would be her punishment for scorning him; then he would step in and make it all better. She'd fall into his arms like the weak little plaything she was. And he would enjoy every second of it.

The figure stood up straight, dusted off his armor and strolled off toward the palace. It was time to enact his plan.

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Vegeta was still in an indignant rage as he stomped through the capital city. The nerve of that freak, daring to talk back to him in such a manner! He had every right to say what he said; he had every right to say whatever he so chose! He was the Prince of all Saiyans! He was next in line for the throne! What he said went without question, and that was that.

Still, perhaps he had been a tad too harsh. Even if he had, though, it certainly hadn't given that freak-girl the right to lay a hand on him! She had struck royalty, an act punishable by death. If she had been anyone other than the daughter of the Kind's closest friend, she would've been drug out into the center of that arena and executed. When he ruled, he certainly wouldn't show such favoritism to anyone. Petty attachments were for the weak! All they'd served to do was hold his father back, and he certainly wasn't eager to repeat that error.

As time passed, he found himself in a part of the city that he rarely frequented: the third-class borough. It was a rather plain neighborhood, with nothing to really make any individual domed dwelling stand out. Odd, considering each dwelling held anywhere up to four families at one time. He expected there to be at least some sign of large groupings of Saiyans living therein, but found none. Then he remembered a regulation he'd ordered not more than a year ago, that third-class dwellings had to be kept clean, lest the occupants receive a steep fine. Yet another case of him acting on a whim.

Truth be told, he really wanted to be a good ruler. He wanted to lead his people as his father had before him. Granted, in his opinion, things could and should be done differently, but he couldn't deny that his father had done an all around decent job. The people certainly seemed happy enough under his rule, with the exception of a few malcontent non-conformists that lingered about the planet. In his opinion, those people would look for anything to complain about, and for now at least, they appeared to be focused intently on slavery. Stupid nonsense; why did they bother trying to change things that were beyond their power to change? It wasn't as if they could ever win their argument anyway. The King's decision had been final and there was no way he was changing his mind, especially after the Purging had been completed. He wasn't about to let all the resources they'd spent be in vain.

As he mulled over such things, one particular dwelling in the area caught his eye; it was larger than the others, obviously structured to be some kind of scientific complex. He remembered having placed an order to said establishment while in one of his top of the world arrogant moods he seemed to have so often; something about making himself stronger by the end of the month. A ridiculous amount of time to complete said task in... But there was no way he could change his mind now. He had a reputation to protect, after all! Deciding there was no time like the present to at least see what ideas their new human scientist may have concocted, he marched over to the building and entered the door.

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Bulma sat down rather hard in the chair in front of her desk, almost completely exhausted from all her work. She couldn't believe her luck. She'd been given this project to complete in a month, yet she hadn't even been given time to draw up plans for it yet. The, she actually had to build this thing and no matter how she reconfigured it, it appeared that this machine would take at least a month to build in and of itself. It was impossible! Ridiculous! It was-

The sound of her front door sliding open startled her and she looked up to see... HIM! That psycho Prince, the one who was responsible for her entire situation in the first place! The one that had pulled her from her home and stuck her here on this godforsaken rock that didn't have so much as a single drop of coffee!

She wanted to scream at him. She wanted to claw his eyes out! She wanted to... to... do SOMETHING to him! Upon further reflection, however, she decided it would be best to save her energy; no doubt she would be needing all of it to complete her assignment, to say nothing of being aware of the more shifty types that frequented her home. She let out a reluctant sigh and tangled her fingers in her hair. "What do you want?" she asked.

Vegeta regarded this woman with some interest. She certainly wasn't typical of most humans. Her hair wasn't of the usual coloring, for one. An odd sort of greenish blue; the Saiyan race hadn't seen that sort of coloring in its entire existence. Most unusual, however, was her appearance.

He had been schooled in his life by many tutors and the like, some of which were female. All of them had fit the usual concept of the intelligent: flat hair, simple appearance, dull manner of speech. But this one was different. He might even go so far as to say she wasn't an ugly waste of space. An unusual feat for a human.

"What do you think I want, Woman? I'm here to check on your progress." He looked around the room at the various machine parts and blueprints scattered across the room. "Though by the looks of things, you haven't gotten far." He smirked at her. "What's wrong, Woman? Incapable of completing a simple task?"

Bulma jumped up from her seat, hands clenched into fists at her side. "Why you...! I'll have you know I am MORE than capable to handle this job! The only problem is the fact that YOU gave me a ridiculously short amount of time to do it in! There's no possible way I can-"

"How much more time will you need?"

Bulma was so shocked fell back down into her chair. "Huh? Wha...?"

Vegeta crossed his arms and scowled. "Open your ears. I asked you, how much more time will you need to finish?"

She felt her jaw drop a bit. The Prince, legendary for his arrogance and unmerciful demeanor, was actually offering her an extension? No way, it had to be a trick! Then again, she really couldn't pass up such an opportunity, not when the alternative was possibly life in a harem. "Um... probably about seven weeks, if I could get a little more help. All I have now is my dad, three other people, and a couple Saiyans who don't feel too inclined to help me."

Vegeta snorted. 'Most likely want her to go to a harem,' he though to himself. "Fine. I'll get you more help. And those Saiyans on your crew will be removed."

She could scarcely believe it. All these accommodations and she didn't even have to ask? "Uh, thanks, I guess."

Vegeta turned and started out the door. "Save your gratitude." He smirked. "I just refuse to allow any Saiyan to be ordered about by a human, let alone one as slow-witted as you."

He just made it out when he heard a large ceramic object shatter against the door.

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Juuhachi sat stunned as she looked at the little human that occupied her bed. He had passed out again shortly after making his statement, which left her cheeks still flushed. She regarded him as he slept, wondering what had possessed him to say such a thing.

In all her years, no one had ever called her beautiful, much less an angel. She had always been considered hideous, a blight on her family and her species. Not even her last suitor had been able to bring himself to say that to her. No real surprise there, everything about the man had been fake; this little human, however, had seemed so sincere, so happy to see her, as if he'd been expecting her to be there when he woke up. That last thought made her blush spread just a bit more. Now she was thinking about waking up with the guy? 'Well, why not?' she reasoned with herself. 'I DO own him now; who's to say that I can't keep him in my room somewhere?'

That last thought did trouble her mind, though. She owned him. She owned another living being, something that she had cried out against time and time again. Sure, she knew that the alternative was to allow the Prince to kill him, but... it still seemed wrong. It was then she made up her mind: he wouldn't be treated as such. She would not treat him as property, would not force him to do what he didn't want to. She would own him in name only. He would be free to move about her family's quarters in the palace, free to do whatever he wished, to a point, of course. She also knew that if it seemed she was giving him too much leeway, he might be taken from her and forced to work at one of the mines. That was sometimes a fate worse than death. No, she would have to keep him on somewhat of a leash, especially in public.

She couldn't help but smile at him as he began to mumble something in his sleep."...So beautiful... perfect," he said. That only served to make her blush even more and she secretly wondered what her brother would say about this. Was he being sincere? Was it possible... did he actually find her... beautiful? Did she dare believe him when he called her perfect? She certainly hoped so, and began to wonder if her brother would approve of him as...

Her eyes flew open wide. Had she actually thought of him like that? It couldn't possibly happen, not now. Besides, all she knew about him was that he was, well, strong, kind, caring, and attractive in his own strange way... She stood and left the room. There was no way she was going to be able to concentrate, not with him in the same room.

Juu made her way down the stairs and into the main room of their apartment to find her father sitting in his favorite chair by the fire, reading some old book or other. No doubt it was some sort of historical account, whether about their own world or not. DDaifu had always been fascinated by the history of various cultures; he said that if you know what happened in a culture's past, you could understand what was happening now, and subsequently predict what might happen in the future. An interesting concept, to be sure, but that wasn't what she was interested in right now.

She rushed over to her father and wrapped her arms around him in a rather tight hug. "Thank you, Father," she whispered. "You don't know how much I appreciate what you've done for me."

Daifu looked up at his daughter and smiled. "Your welcome, my dear. Though I must admit, I'm not quite sure what exactly I've done for you. Care to enlighten me?"

Juu knew her father's tricks all too well. This was no doubt his subtle way of checking up on her, making certain she hadn't 'soiled her reputation' as he would put it. Her suspicions were confirmed as he began sniffing lightly, looking for any change in her scent as his gaze shifted subtly to her neck. "You really don't trust me, do you? Nothing like that happened yet, Father. He just... said some things. That's all."

"Such as...?"

Juu looked down at the floor, as she felt her cheeks grow warmer still. "He... he said I was... beautiful. Beautiful and perfect."

Daifu could feel his protective father instincts clash with his shock and happiness. No one had ever said that about Juuhachi in all the years she'd been alive. He shook his head slightly to clear it. "I see. So that would explain the red cheeks you're currently sporting?"

Juu scowled slightly. "Well, maybe it's because my own father is checking to see if I'm still a virgin? I'm not some whore, you know. I won't act on a crush-" She clamped her mouth shut and her eyes flew open at the sound of what she'd just said. Crush? Her? Impossible. Certainly she wouldn't be so stupid as to fall into that trap again, would she? Still, there was no denying the fact that when Krillin, HER Krillin, had said those things, she had felt-

"Well, my dear, I'm glad you're happy. I just hope you realize that this is going to have to count as your birthday gift. You've no idea how much I had to shell out to pay for him." He smiled slyly. "The King's pride is great, but his greed is greater. But listen, Juuhachi, I don't want you sleeping with that human in ANY sense of the word, do you hear me? I don't care where you put him, but he is NOT to share your bed." He noted his daughter's slightly downcast face and sighed. "Really, it's not as if I'm not allowing you to have any contact with him. I tell you what, why don't I have some workers convert that old closet of yours into a bedroom? You never use it anyway, and since he's your 'bodyguard' and all, he really should be kept close, shouldn't he?"

Juu threw her arms around her father's neck and hugged him tightly again. "Thank you, Papa! I really appreciate this!"

Much as Daifu was happy for his daughter, he was having a slight problem. "You're welcome, but right now, Daddy can't breathe!" She looked at his face, which was now beginning to turn blue and released, placing her hands behind her back and staring at the floor in her embarrassment.

"I'm sorry, Father. I just… I don't know what came over me. But... I've never wanted to be around anyone this much before. He's... he's comforting to me. I suppose it's because his people view him the same way that ours view me. I can't say for certain, but I think he's... special."

Daifu straightened his house robe and smiled again. "I'm sure you do. Now, you run along. I'm sure you wish to see him again already." Before she left the room, he called out to her. "One last thing Juuhachi. When the lad wakes up, send him down here. I wish to have a chat with him."

"Papa, you act as if he were a suitor."

He chuckled slightly. "Are you denying that you wish him to be?" She merely blushed in response and he laughed again. "I thought so. Now, as I said, when he feels fine enough to move, bring him here to see me. We have things to discuss, he and I."

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About four days later, Chi-Chi hummed as she skipped down the corridor. Thankfully, there was more light at the moment, so she wasn't relegated to the light put out by that glowing sphere, which had learned was called, appropriately enough, a glowsphere, and could see quite well to avoid the few hands that would jut out from some of the cell bars at her. Not many dared to mess with her anymore; after her first trip down here, she'd learned that she was allowed to take appropriate action toward anyone who attempted that, and more than a few were nursing broken hands or whining about missing fingers. She was also intrigued to note that Kakarot found that fact quite... well, attractive.

Upon her arrival, she inserted her key into the lock, only to find the cell door was already unlocked. She stepped into the room to see Kakarot free of his chains, slipping on some strange armor, his rags he'd been relegated to before lying in a pile in the corner of the cell. "Wha-?" She looked at him, total shock plastered onto her face. "What's going on?"

He looked up at her and smiled. "Oh, yeah. I meant to tell you earlier; I'm getting out today. They reduced my sentence for some reason. I guess the Prince must've been in a pretty good mood about something or other to do that."

Chi-Chi looked downcast. "I-I'm glad. Really. So, I guess... I guess this means I won't be seeing much of you anymore, huh?" She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up into a pair of serious dark eyes.

"Chi-Chi, don't you remember what I told you? You're a very special, very beautiful woman and I have no intention of letting you go. You... you really mean a lot to me." He flashed her that same big, dopey grin. "In fact, I've got something I want to ask you about later tonight. Can you meet me in the palace courtyard after you're done with your work?"

She really didn't know what to say. One second, she was panicked over the fact he was leaving, and now, he was asking her to meet him after her assignments were done? Things certainly seemed to be moving fast to her, but she felt compelled to answer. "I'm not sure if I can. I mean, I don't usually get done 'till after dark, and then they don't usually let me leave the building..."

"What if I ask them to let you? I've got some pull with my rank; I can probably get you some time to leave. Would you come then?"

Chi-Chi sighed. "Well, if you can, then yes, I'll come."

Kakarot's smile grew. "That's great! I'll see you tonight, then." He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "G'bye, Pretty Eyes!"

Chi-Chi froze where she stood and began blushing. He kissed her. For the first time in her life, a guy had kissed her! Her head was still reeling from that, but she managed to keep her mind clear enough to call out to him. "Just what's so important about what you have to say, anyway?"

He called back to her without looking back as he left the room. "You'll see tonight!"

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Kakarot got no further than ten feet away from the dungeon's entrance before he heard his brother's voice ring out. "Well, well, it seems Kakarot has finally been released. How was your stay, brother? Did you find it enjoyable?" Raditz stepped toward him with a malicious smirk etched onto his face. "Of course you did; you had that Earth whore to keep you company."

He ignored his younger brother's growl and began to laugh as he continued. "Tell me, brother, how was she? Was it to your liking? Perhaps now that you're done with her, I should take a turn. Not like she's good for anything el-" He didn't get to finish his statement as he felt a fist connect with his jaw. Still slightly reeling from the hit, Raditz looked up into the face of his brother. "What's wrong, did I touch a nerve? You're pathetic, you know that? Consorting with the females of a lesser race, one that isn't fit to wipe the mud from the boots of those two outcasts that have the honor of being called noble. All of them deserve to rot and you with them!"

Kakarot's face gained a smirk of its own. "So that's what this is about, isn't it? You can't stand the fact that I've found someone, but you got rejected by someone that nobody else seems to want. You didn't lose to competition; you lost to your own arrogance. Well, guess what? It's time for you to get over yourself."

Raditz felt his hands ball into fists as he struggled to control his rage, a large fake smile on his face. "Tell, you what, Brother. I'll let you slide this time. But the next time you cross me, you're mine. Do you hear me? Mine!" With that he stormed out the door, headed toward his own home.

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The mid-day light shining into his eyes was what woke him at first. He felt inclined to roll over and sleep some more; he hadn't had a decent night's sleep in a few weeks. However, the sounds of hammering, sawing and other noises associated with construction kept him from his desires. Krillin sat up and scratched the back of his head, trying to remember where he was. The room seemed palatial, rather ornate and feminine and there seemed to be several construction workers entering and exiting a room adjacent to this one.

He jumped out of the bed as he suddenly remembered what had happened. He was in HER room! That angel he had seen on the wall that day, she wasn't an angel at all! She was a Saiyan! How could he have been so stupid?! She was probably going to kill him for what happened, for what he said-

"Oh, good. You're awake."

He turned toward the source of the voice to see that same blonde standing in her door way, and the sight nearly made his heart stop. She was wearing what appeared to be some rather anatomically correct armor, which accented her already noticeable figure. On top of that, it didn't cover a single portion of her long, gorgeous legs. He thought he was going to faint again right then and there.

She smiled at him. "Hello. My name's Juuhachi."

'Juuhachi? Wow, that's a pretty name. Pretty name for a pretty girl...' He then remembered what he had said to her earlier and began to panic. "Oh, my... I-I'm sorry! About what I said, I had no right. I shouldn't have spoken that way."

"Don't be sorry," she said, smiling a little wider. "You... you're actually the first person to ever say that to me." She blushed and looked away from him. "I-it was rather nice, actually. Thanks."

He found himself blushing now and chuckled nervously. "Heh, no problem. I mean, I only said what was true."

"No one else thinks it's true. They think of me as a deformed freak."

Krillin's eye flew wide. Her, considered ugly? "WHAT?! How can anyone think that?"

Juu looked up from the floor. "My coloring. My eyes and hair are colored strangely. No other Saiyan is colored like this." She hung her head and turned her back to him. "It's... it's ugly!"

"Are you kidding?" She turned back to find Krillin standing directly in front of her now. "Where I come from, blonde hair, blue eyes, that's considered gorgeous! To any human guy, you'd be the most angelic being they'd ever seen! And frankly, I think that if any Saiyan had any brains, he'd think you were gorgeous, too. I've seen some of the Saiyan women, and frankly, they're rather plain. You, you're... perfect." He found himself blushing brightly again, and stared down at the floor, a weak laugh escaping his lips.

Juuhachi smiled brightly again. 'You'd like this one, Juunana. I'm sure of it.' "You must be hungry," she said. "Come with me, I'll get you some food. After that, my father would like a word with you."

Krillin's face erupted into a huge grin. "Food?! Lead the way!"

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Chi-Chi wandered the courtyard, hoping to catch sight of Kakarot. She'd finished her duties about an hour ago, and apparently Kakarot had succeeded in getting permission for her to leave to meet him. Finally, after about thirty minutes of searching, she found him in a part of the palaces oversized garden, standing in a gazebo. A large smile appeared on his face as he waved to her and motioned for her to come to him.

"Glad you could make it," he said when she finally arrived. "I'm really excited. I've got some big news for you!"

She couldn't help smiling at him. "Really? And what might that be?"

He smiled shyly and drooped his head a bit. "Well... I got you reassigned. You won't be feeding criminals anymore."

Chi-Chi couldn't believe her ears. Just how much pull did this man have? "O-okay, what'll I be doing, then?"

She noticed that Kakarot seemed to become a bit more nervous, as he began to run his hand through his unruly hair. "Well, I-uh I hope you don't mind... I had them make you m-my personal cook. I figured this way, I could still see you, and you wouldn't have to worry about anyone slapping you, or any thugs groping you... I thought it'd make you happy.

Chi-Chi opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. He had done all that for her? And now he seemed nervous, as if he were worried she'd be mad. That was the sweetest thing anyone had ever done for her! Still unable to speak, she stood on her tip-toes and kissed him.

He smiled. "Wow! I guess that means you like the idea?"

Chi-Chi smiled as well and wrapped her arms around him. After a moment, she found her voice and spoke, fully intent on saying that she loved it. Instead, three other words came out. "I love you."

She opened her eyes wide, shocked at the fact she had said that. When he spoke, however, her nerves were once again calm. "I love you too, Chi-Chi. That's why I want to ask you something."

Chi-Chi's heart began to flutter as she looked up into his eyes. "Yes?"

"Well, I think you know how much you mean to me. I love you, I really do. I'm not sure how it happened so fast, and I frankly don't care. What I care about is the fact that you are the perfect woman; you're strong, independent, beautiful..." and here he smiled, "... and boy can you cook! And, most of all, you're my soul mate, Chi-Chi. When I'm around you, I feel... I feel indestructible. Unstoppable. I feel like I can do anything."

"Chi-Chi... will you do me the honor of becoming my mate?"

Chi-Chi could feel tears stinging at the back of her eyes as she struggled with the urge not to cry. This was like some sort of fairy tale she'd heard her mother read her when she was a child. She smiled and her voice trembled as she spoke.

"I would love to."

Without speaking so much as another word, he kissed her and scooped her up into his arms, carrying her into the palace in the direction of his room.

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_I guess I'll stop here for now. I hope you all enjoy this. Review with any, and I do mean ANY comments or questions. Thanks!_


	7. Chapter 7

**Fulfillment**

_Hey, everyone! It's me again! Bet you've been wondering when I was gonna update, huh? Well, I guess the answer is: NOW! Yes, I'm back and ready to enthrall you once again with what some people say is one of the few original, non-clichéd Vegeta-sei fics available. Not that I'm bragging or anything… just saying what I've been told._

_Anyways, we're sorta still on fillers at the moment. Next chap's gonna have some bigger plot stuff, though. I can promise you that much. And now, here's the next chapter._

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**Chapter 7**

_Four Hours before the end of Ch. 6_

To say that Krillin was astonished by the size and scale of this palace was an understatement. Upon awakening from his slumber, he had found that the 'bedroom' that he had been sleeping in was nearly the size of Kame House itself! It had bee bi-level, even! It had several closets, a small library, what appeared to be a study, a bathroom of course… to be honest, it seemed to have everything but a kitchen! And when he had been shown the 'closet' he'd be staying in, he'd gone paler than a ghost. That room was almost twice the size of his own back home!

And that had just been the bedroom. Walking through the halls, he had seen several doors, each one quite a ways distant from one another; an indication of their size, no doubt. And when he and his host had passed by some of what she had referred to as "Servant's quarters", he had gasped audibly at the sight: they were even bigger than the room he was supposed to be in! Perhaps even twice the size!

As the two continued through the halls, a loud rumble could be heard echoing through the hall. Juuhachi initially froze and began to look around in search of the cause of the noise. A small, embarrassed laugh soon followed, and Juu turned to face the short little human behind her. His cheeks were tinted red, and he began rubbing the back of his head in what seemed to be an embarrassed gesture. "Uh, sorry about that," he said. "I really don't mean to be rude, but can we hurry? I-uh, I haven't really eaten for about a week…"

Juu's brow furrowed slightly at that statement and a small frown settled on her lips. "You mean to tell me that they didn't feed you at all?!"

Krillin looked down and shuffled his feet slightly. "They figured that there wasn't any real point. When I was on the transport ship, they figured that I'd be fine until they got me to the planet. The only reason they gave me even the slightest nourishment was for energy so I could breed."

The female cocked a blonde eyebrow at that last statement. 'Breed'? So they were trying to use THAT despicable practice? Oh, she was SO going to have some choice words for that smarmy little Prince when she next saw him, public place or no.

"And when we got here, they didn't bother, either. I mean, I was pretty much marked for death from the moment I arrived, and why bother feeding me if I was just gonna die, y'know?"

Juu's face softened slightly. "Well then, I suppose we could take a shortcut." She reached over and took Krillin's hand in hers, completely oblivious to his now completely red face. She led him down the hall past another two rooms before they entered what appeared to Krillin to be either a currently unused storage room or housing for an exotic dust collection. A large cloud of the stuff was kicked into the air as the two walked, and it was one of the few times he was thankful to be without a certain part of his anatomy. He could only imagine what 'fun' he would have if that stuff got into his nose. Probably be sneezing for at least a week.

As they walked through the room, he began to take notice of his female companion once again. His very attractive female companion that he really wanted to get to know better. He could still hear her words ringing through his head and shook it in shock that anyone could be so stupid as to call this woman ugly. She was an absolute angel! And though he hated to admit that his stay with his master had rubbed off on him, he noted that she had a VERY nice body; her current attire made that fact quite impossible to ignore.

He soon realized that she had stopped moving and removed his current gaze, which was fixed to a somewhat embarrassing place, to look upwards at the woman before him, who was looking over her shoulder at him. A small smirk had made its way onto her features, and he could've sworn he saw her cheeks go red as she spoke.

"Well, I see someone's taking in the sights already."

Krillin found himself blushing profusely and began rubbing the back of his head out of habit. He received a slight start, however, at the feeling he received on his hand; he STILL hadn't gotten used to having hair. "Well, I-uh… I wasn't… I…" He stopped his previous actions and hung his head slightly. "I'm sorry."

Juu's smirk remained on her face, though the blush had faded. "No need to apologize. It's actually somewhat flattering. No one's ever really done that before. Well, not to my knowledge, at least." The smirk left and her features became dead serious. "Just don't make a habit of it. I'd hate to have to damage you."

Krillin paled visibly at the look on her face and the deadly tone she had just used. "Y-yes, ma'am." It was times like these that he cursed his old sensei for passing some of his habits on to him. It had been bad enough to live with back home, but here it could very well get him killed… or made into a eunuch.

The smile returned to Juu's features as she held her hand out to him. "Good. Now take my hand." As soon as he had done so, she hauled him into her arms and stood on the window ledge. The little man in her arms chose to ignore his current proximity to an attractive woman and instead noted that they were several stories above the ground.

"Um… you're not gonna do what I THINK you're gonna do, are you?"

Sparing him one last grin, she shoved herself off the window ledge and began to drop through the air.

----------

Inside the palace, the King sat on his throne, attempting to sort out various political matters. His task was soon interrupted as his ears heard what he had to describe as the sound of some poor animal being mutilated. His head snapped up and his eye began to twitch.

'What in the world was THAT?!'

----------

Juu was still falling through the air, attempting to block out the shrieks coming from the little man that was clinging to her for dear life. Honestly, one would think that after all the things he'd seen, he wouldn't be afraid of a little free fall. Nevertheless, he clung to her for dear life, and the proximity was starting to make her blush.

Krillin, on the other hand, was too scared to care where he was. Was this woman crazy or something?! What kind of a person just jumps out of a window without being able to…

It was at that moment he noticed they weren't falling anymore. He opened his tightly closed eyes to find them both floating in front of a window on the second floor. And subsequently felt like an idiot.

"You can fly?' he asked her, his eyes still wide in shock.

Juu looked down at him and smirked. "Well, duh! We all can."

Krillin jumped off her to find a foothold on the window ledge and whirled to face her again. He had a slightly perturbed look on his face as he took a few ragged breaths before speaking. "And why, may I ask, didn't you TELL ME?! I was scared out of my mind thinking you were gonna get us flattened! I wasn't sure I could stop us before we hit, what with the extra weight and all…"

Juu looked at him with surprise plastered onto her face. "Wait, you mean… you can fly, too?!"

This time, it was Krillin's turn to smirk as he folded his arms and closed his eyes. "Yep! I'm just full of surprises, aren't I?" He turned away and went to take a step inwards, eyes still closed…

And promptly found himself falling off the ledge and flat onto his face on the floor.

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_Okay, I know I promised it would be more, but I feel a need to stop here for now. Don't ask me why. I just feel it's a good place to end a filler. Plus, if I had done what I originally stated for this chapter, it would've been a bit too long. Also, this way, you'll know I'm still alive and updating!_

_On one final note, please check out the works of Dark Prey of the Underworld. She's an amazing author, and her stories appeal to both DBZ AND Naruto fans. Seriously, please R&R her stuff as a favor to me, if nothing else. But I guarantee you'll like her works._

_See Ya!_


	8. Chapter 8

**Fulfillment**

_Hidey-ho, folks! First off: I'm SO sorry I made you wait so long for this! I really DID try to get this done sooner, but a lot of stuff happened at once, and… Well, now I'm back and I should be able to update fairly regularly from now on! So, without further ado, let the entertainment commence!_

**Chapter 8**

Krillin lay on the floor for a moment, trying desperately to regain his composure and ignore the pain pulsing through his face. 'It's always me,' he thought to himself. 'Why did I have to be such a klutz? And in front of a pretty girl… again!' He slowly began to push himself up off the floor.

"Are you alright?" Juuhachi asked with a smirk.

Krillin managed to climb into a sitting position, gently rubbing at the large red mark in the middle of his face. "Yeah, I'm fine. I've had worse falls than that before, believe me."

"Well, maybe next time you'll keep your eyes open when you're walking, huh?" Juu asked with a slight giggle. "I swear, how you managed to give Vegeta so much trouble is beyond me." She was taken aback slightly as Krillin visage changed from his slight smile he seemed to always have to one of sorrow and pain. "Um… hey, was it something I said?"

"I-we… we really didn't give HIM any trouble. Not him personally, anyway." His hands began to ball into fists. "We didn't last too long against him. His buddies he brought with managed to wear everyone else down… even Tien… and then when he attacked…" Tears began to fall as Krillin clamped his eyes shut, trying desperately to block out the memories.

* * *

_Another loud explosion rang out from outside as silt fell from the cave ceiling. He tried to raise a weak arm to shield himself and nearly cried out from the pain. Why? Why now of all times…_

"_Krillin?! Are you alright?!" The shouts of his master were unmistakable. He tried vainly to answer, but only a strangled squeak came out. The sound of rapid movement and he soon saw his master's face directly over him. "It's alright, son," he said, "just stay down. The other boys and I'll take care of this."_

"_How… How'd they find us?" he managed to gasp out._

"_I don't really know. Can't say for sure, but someone led 'em right to us. Maybe it was that long haired hippie kid we met up with last week, maybe they just found some way other than those machines they wear, to track us. Now you need to rest, boy."_

"_N-no! I have to fight… I have to help!" He tried one last time to push himself back up only to have his arms give out from under him, sending the back of his head slamming to the ground. Another explosion sounded, and his master once again rushed out of the small cavern into the battle. Everything was a blur to him, a grim tapestry of flashes, explosions and screams of agony and rage. In the distance, he could hear the barking of orders from the Saiyans that were outside._

"_He's over there! Get him!"_

"_Watch out for the big guy! He's getting ready for some sort of attack!"_

"_AUUGGHH! MY EYES!"_

_All of this seemed to be going on in another world as he lay there trying to stay awake. He should be out there! He needed to be out there helping his sensei, not lying on the ground like some helpless child!_

_A sudden noise at the cave entrance caught his attention. He looked up to see a lone Saiyan clutching at his eyes, his armor already blackened and pierced in three places in the stomach area, a small trickle of blood coming from each. "That frickin' little midget!" he growled out. Wait'll I can see again. Then I'll teach him not to hit me when I can't see!"_

_Krillin held his breath, not daring to make a move. He was in no condition to face a Saiyan, not like this! Maybe, if he was extremely lucky, the monster wouldn't notice him and would just leave…_

_Another explosion rocked the cave, violently shaking even more dust from the ceiling... which fell directly onto him, some of it getting into his lungs. He tried to suppress the cough, but it was too late. The Saiyan turned to face him._

"_Hey, who's there?!" he called, as Krillin tried to stop his cough. The Saiyan took another step into the cave and began pressing a small series of buttons on his device. A small light came on, shining directly onto Krillin's face. The Saiyan grinned, showing a lack of a few front teeth._

"_Well, now! What have we here? A little human got separated from the rest of his little herd!" He rose up his hand and a small ball of red energy appeared. "Ha! Like shooting fish in a barrel!"_

_He took aim and prepared to fire-_

_

* * *

_Juuhachi found herself at a bit of a loss. The way she had been raised, emotional states were a somewhat complicated; she had always been told that as a noble, she was expected to remain emotionally detached in front of those outside the family, a practice she had put into place upon hearing the news of her brother. It was as her father always said, "We are to remain strong before others, lest they think us weak. There is always time for weeping when we are alone."

She thought it strange that she and her family were living by the words of some long-dead Saiyan philosopher, but it was all she knew. And, as a result, this display in front of her was making her somewhat… uncomfortable. She needed to do something to stop it; if this human was considered weak, she might be considered so by association.

"Hey, I thought you were hungry?" Krillin looked up into a stern pair of ice blue eyes and cringed slightly. He'd almost completely forgotten about that in the midst of all the memories that had come flooding back… and probably made a fool of himself to boot.

"Sorry about that. Just had some… bad memories for a second, is all." His stomach gave off another loud growl. 'Well, I can't change the past,' he thought to himself. 'Guess I better focus on the present for now.'

"So," he asked with a grin, "Where's the kitchen?"

* * *

Deep in the darkness of space, a lone ship cruised toward its destination. The ship had been, at one time, a troop transport for Frieza's army, but now… Now it looked to be capable of fighting a war in and of itself. The sheer amount of turrets pointing in every conceivable direction on the ship's circular hull as well as the black camouflage paint that covered it suggested only one possible use for the ship.

It was a pirate vessel.

The crew on board was what one would expect in this day and age: remnants of Frieza's army that no longer had a master to serve and were looking for a way to kill time and 'have fun'. And they had all that and more under their new captain.

Said captain stood in front of the viewport in his quarters, taking in the view of the stars. He was dressed in a flamboyant red armor similar in design to the armor he used to wear. Various medals were pinned to his chest with no regard for their meaning, most of which had been taken by force in one raid or another. Each of the medals were polished until they shone, much like the two large black horns that made their home on his head.

Yes, life was indeed good for Captain Ginyu.

"A beautiful sight," he said with a slight sigh. "Don't you agree my dear?"

The human woman chained to the wall next to him simply whimpered slightly. He walked over to her and patted her lightly on the head. "Now, now, don't worry. None of my men will lay so much as a hand on you. Nobody will pay for you if you're damaged, now will they?" He stepped away from her with a chuckle. "If that rich fool of a monkey was willing to pay that much to buy you in the first place, imagine how much he'll pay to have you back! So you'll remain in my care until then. After that, however…" He laughed again. "Well, I think you know what fate awaits you, don't you?"

There was a knock at the door. "Come in," the Captain called out. The door slid upwards to reveal a short, orange-skinned humanoid with long white hair saluting. Ginyu rolled his eyes. "What is it now, Jeice?"

"Beggin' your pardon, Cap'n, but Burter and I spotted something off to starboard that you should take a look at. And I'd hurry; Recoome seems a bit _too _anxious to blow it up, if you ask me." He rolled his eyes slightly. "All muscle, no brains, that'n."

"Fine, fine! Let's just get going, then!" The Captain stepped through the door. "Knowing his patience, he's probably blown it up already."

"I doubt he'd do it without us knowing it, Cap'n. He's want'n to use the big guns."

Ginyu sighed in exasperation. "Always with the overkill, Recoome?" he asked as the door slid shut behind him.

The woman was left alone, staring off into space. Tears fell silently from her eyes as she uttered a single word.

"Bulma…"

* * *

Ginyu half ran into the control room to see Burter physically restraining Recoome from destroying whatever object he was targeting. "Oh, come on!" the large man cried out. "It's such an easy shot! And I didn't get to blow anything up the last time!"

The big blue alien struggled to hold him back. "I said NO! Not until the Captain arrives!"

"Please?!"

"NO!"

"PLEASE?!"

"NO!!"

"…"

"…"

"Please?"

"NO!!"

Their fight was interrupted by the Captain's uproarious laughter. "Oh-HO! I swear, the way you two go at it… HA!" The two stopped their fight and quickly saluted their captain. He grinned. "Alright, boys, what are we dealing with this time?"

Burter scurried back over to his control station and brought back a data pad. "You're not gonna believe this, but… It's a pod.

Ginyu raised an eyebrow. "A space pod? As in what Frieza used to stick us in?"

"The very same, sir!"

Ginyu's mouth changed from an amused smile to an all-out grin. "Perfect! Bring it aboard! If it's a smuggled shipment, we snag it, and if it's a person… well' we'll just unload 'em for some cash at the spaceport."

Recoome hung his head. "Aw man! I wanted to blow it up!"

Ginyu frowned at him. "Stop your whining and get to the capture bay to see what's in it!"

Recoome gave one more sad sigh and saluted. "Yes sir."

* * *

"Recoome to bridge… Man, I hate talking like this. Pod is secure!"

The captain's face loomed over him on the view screen. "Well, don't just stand there, stupid! Open it!"

"Yeah, yeah. Gimme a sec!" Recoome pressed the large button on the pod's panel. The panel flashed red and a series of smaller buttons lit beneath it. "Aw crap! Looks like we're gonna need a security code in order to open this stupid thing."

Ginyu covered his mic and turned to Jeice. "You don't suppose he can crack it, do you?"

Jeice raised an eyebrow. "Uh, Cap'n… do you remember who it is we're talkin' about?"

"Ah… yes, well… can anyone on this ship crack it?"

"I highly doubt it, Cap'n. At least, not before we reach the spaceport."

Ginyu uncovered his mic and turned back to the screen. "Well then, looks like you'll just have to break it open, won't you?"

Recoome grinned from ear to ear. "All right! Now that I can do!!" He picked up a long, thin metal strip and placed it in the crack that was at the top of the entrance. "Well, here goes nuthin'!"

He applied slight pressure to it at first to gauge the amount of force he'd need. Once he was satisfied, he began applying the full force of his weight behind the strip.

On the screen behind him, Ginyu twitched slightly. 'Why does he bother trying to be all scientific when he's just gonna do that anyways?'

Recoome began pushing as hard as he could, ignoring the loud groans of metal coming from the pod… as well as the slightly rhythmic chirping coming from the keypad as the red lights slowly became green.

* * *

The occupants of the bridge sat in suspense, waiting to see what cargo lay inside. Some believed it to be narcotics, which they wanted to keep half of. Some believed it to be some ancient artifact that they could sell to some private collector or other. Still others were hoping for a gorgeous woman or two. Debates raged on and some even placed bets until one astute crew member watching the view screen noticed something.

"Hey… didn't those little lights used to be red?"

Everyone focused on the screen just in time for the final light to turn from red to green. Suddenly, the door flew open, slamming Recoome to the floor and nearly crushing him beneath it. A green creature the likes of which none of them had ever seen stepped out, placing a single foot on the door directly above Recoome's head. "So I was right," it said. "Someone WAS foolish enough to pick me up." He heard a muffled cry from underneath him and jumped off the door, snaking his tail around his victim's neck as he did so. He pulled his prey out from under the door and examined him for a short time. "Bah, no tail. You're not even worth my time, insect!" He flung Recoome against the far wall.

Ginyu jumped up out of his chair. "Quick, set the camera to focus on that thing's movements! Now!"

The screen adjusted to follow the creature as it crept away from it's pod. Suddenly, a pink flash engulfed the creature, and a small explosion shook the ship.

"Recoome, you idiot, you'll kill us all if you keep that up!" Ginyu sighed. "Oh well, at least he got that… thing, whatever it was."

As the smoke cleared, however…

"N-no way! No freakin' way!! That thing's not even hurt!"

The creature just stood there for a moment before turning back to face the injured Recoome. "Now I know you weren't stupid enough to try that with me, were you?" it said, blinking it's evil eyes only once. Recoome raised his arm and fired again. And again. And AGAIN. The creature just stood there, unaffected by the blasts. Suddenly, it lunged forward, thrusting its needle-pointed tail out in front of it.

A loud thud came through the speakers, and all crew members slammed their eyes shut for a moment, anticipating Recoome's impalement. When they opened their eyes, they saw the tail was not in Recoome, but lodged in the ship's hull directly behind his head. The creature leaned forward until he was at eye level with Recoome. "I warned you, moron! Now I think I'll test a new killing method on you." He whipped his tail out of the hull and slammed Recoome's head up against the hole. "Let's just see what happens when your head is sucked out through a tiny hole by an absolute vacuum!!"

Recoome began clutching at his head, scratching and screaming as he literally felt the back of his head being slowly ripped off and sucked through the hole. The pain was terrible and immense, and the screams… the screams, mixed with the laughter of that monster… Ginyu couldn't take it anymore and slammed his palm down on the view screen deactivation switch. "I want a unit down to that hold immediately! I don't care what it takes, that thing dies!"

A voice crackled over the ships communication system. "Um, sir… This is unit two. We came down here as soon as we saw what was happening…"

Ginyu was growing impatient. "Yes, and?!"

"Well, sir… we got here, and the doors… they were already torn off! Two huge hull doors ripped apart, sir! And Recoome… his head is… almost completely gone, sir…"

The bridge was completely silent except for the captain, who was beside himself with rage. "Are you telling me… that that-that… THING is loose on MY ship?!"

"Yes sir, but we're already starting to search for it. We should have it located before too looooAAAAAAUUUUUGGGGH!-"

The com speakers became a mess of screams, blasts, and splatters until all was silent… except for that one evil laugh.

Ginyu slammed down on the shipwide communication button. "Attention all units! Get to the bridge IMMEDIATELY and protect it AT ALL COSTS!!" He turned to look at the crew on the bridge. "That means all you idiots, too! GET OUT THERE!" All members of the crew rushed out the door. Ginyu turned to Burter. "You go, too. I need someone COMPETENT to command those men!"

Burter saluted and rushed out the door.

Silence reigned throughout the ship. The only sound that could be heard was that of Ginyu's and Jeice's panting breaths. When suddenly….

BOOM!!

"There it is, men! Kill it!"

"WHAT IS THAT THING?!"

"LOOK OUT!!"

"AUUUGGHHH!"

"GET IT OFF ME!!"

"IT'S OVER THERE! KILL IT NOW!"

Then came the unmistakable voice of Burter. "HELP ME! HELP ME! OH GOD, HELP MEEEEEEEEE-!!" A sickening crunch soon followed, and the sound of the few remaining men retreating was heard. Soon, there was an insistent pounding on the door.

BANG!!

Jeice turned to Ginyu, shaking like a leaf on a tree. "Cap'n, what're we gonna do?!"

BANG!!

"Cap'n?!"

BANG!!

"CAP'N GINYU, SIR!"

Ginyu just stood there, shaking.

BAM!! The door burst open as Burter's head was hurled through it, landing at the feet of the two remaining officers of the ship. Before either one could react, a green blur flashed into the room, and a gore-covered tail was held at the captain's throat.

"My name is Cell. So very nice to meet you… Captain."

_So, how was it? Not too bad, I hope. And a special, and inexcusably late 'Happy Birthday' to Kapsule corp. I told you I'd get it out for you! Sorry it's a few… months… late. Anyways, enjoy!! R&R, folks!_


	9. Chapter 9

**Fulfillment**

_Hey again, all. I know you been waitin', so now I'll be getting' on with the writing. Oddly enough, though, I tend to write better late at night. Strange, perhaps, but so long as I gets the job done, who cares? Here we go…_

* * *

**Chapter 9**

"THIS is the KITCHEN?" Krillin's exclamation nearly echoed in the large tiled room. "Jeez, this is even bigger than your room! I mean… Wow!"

Juu rolled her eyes. "I swear, all males are the same, no matter the species. You all get excited over food."

"Hey, don't blame me, I was on starvation rations!" Krillin's dark eyes roamed the room. "So… uh… I see a lot of stoves and such, but where's the food even kept, anyways?" He was startled to see Juuhachi hold up a large basket.

"I already took care of that while we were in the pantry. Now we just get some water and find you a place to sit…"

"Whoa, hold on," he stopped dead in his tracks. "When were we in a pantry? We came in through that window into that… big…" He laughed softly. "Oh. That was a… pantry…?"

Juuhachi nodded.

Krillin sighed. "This place… closets the size of bedrooms… pantries as big as a normal-sized room… kitchens the size of a house… what's next, toilets you can swim in?"

"Ha! Not quite. But yes, things are rather palatial here." Juu smirked at him. "But then again, this is a _palace_, isn't it?"

A sheepish grin crept across Krillin's face. "Heh, guess it is, huh?" His gaze turned up toward the high ceiling dotted with the occasional support arch. "Well, that at least explains the size of the kitchen. Must be a lot of people sending food orders through here."

"Oh yeah, quite a few. There's the royal family, the nobles and their families, the guards, the hired hands, and any number of slave meals might be made here…"

Krillin felt his heart sink for a moment. Her statement had been a reminder: no matter how good he might have it, no matter how well he was treated… he was now, and would forever be, a slave, and to be honest… the realization made him lose some of his appetite.

The sound of a foot tapping on the floor roused him, and he looked up to see Juu, hands on her hips. "Okay, I don't wanna sound pushy or anything, but my father IS waiting, and I'd rather we not keep him that way." She reached behind her and pushed open a large door. "He can get a little cranky if he doesn't get his snack before the 25th hour."

Krillin gulped. "R-right. Sorry. So, uh… where is he?"

Juu stepped through the door, Krillin following closely behind. "He's still in his library," she sighed. "Ever since Mother was killed, he's spent a lot of his time in that room, studying the books that managed to survive the civil war." She sensed he was about to speak. "And if you want to know more about that, ask my father. He's one of the few people that know most of the details."

Krillin just walked behind her, dumbfounded. 'How does she do that?' he wondered as they started up a winding, torch-lit staircase. "So how many floors up do we have to go?" he asked.

"We go up two floors, go right down the hall, go through the sixth door on the left and then down another three floors and head right. After that, you really can't miss the library. It's though the really big door at the end of the hall."

Krillin scratched his head. "Not the most accessible place in the world, is it?"

She scoffed. "Not really supposed to be. Father cherishes all the books in there more than almost anything else; he made it so that there was only one way in to keep out the looters and vandals. And on top of that, whenever he's not in there, there's a guard posted at the entrance." She sighed. "Or rather, there used to be." She stopped and opened the door at the end of the second flight of stairs. "Stay close and keep your head down, alright?"

Krillin nodded. "Sure." As they made their way down the hall, he whispered, "Hey, if you don't mind me asking-"

"QUIET!" Juu hissed at him, her eyes fixed on him with a stern gaze. The two silently crept down the long hallway, Juu politely nodding at some of the other Noble children that they passed on their way. Apparently this was some sort of main hall for the entirety of the palace, as there were many nobles and their families scattered throughout the hall, as well as a healthy accompaniment of slaves and hired servants tending to a few large tapestries bearing a strange symbol akin to a standing trident crossed at the handle by a half-circle. As Krillin looked over a railing, he realized that the same symbol decorated the floor of a large room below them, which was currently being scrubbed by a large number of slaves, being supervised by a Saiyan with a large scar covering the left side of his face…

"Psst! Hey!" Krillin felt a tug on his shirt and focused on Juu.

"Didn't I tell you to keep your head down?! If he catches you looking at him, he'll have you beaten within an inch of your life! The only slaves allowed to look at a guard are the ones that are assigned to work under him, understand?"

Krillin felt a lump form in his throat. "Uh… yeah. I got it. Sorry."

Juu released him. "Good. Now let's go, we're almost there."

Krillin kept his gaze fixed firmly on the blood-red carpet under his feet as they made their way down the final stretch of the hall- which to his mind was more of a skywalk- and into the stairway.

Juu felt her shoulders slump as she let out a sigh. "Look, I'm sorry I had to be so harsh with you there. It's just that… slaves are not permitted to speak to their masters in public, or at any time, really, unless spoken to. And they certainly can't look their superiors in the eye. I was only trying to look out for you. In the future, though…" She started down the stairs. "You're on your own. I can't keep covering for you without people getting suspicious. Got it?"

Krillin let out a sigh of his own. "Yeah… I got it. Hey, can I ask you something? What happened to your guard?"

Juu sighed. "His name was Bardock. He was a friend of my father's. He was a great warrior. Surpassed the supposed class limits to become as powerful as the elites. Well, he managed to get himself placed as the Captain of the Guard for a while, and did a great job until he had a bit of a falling out with the King and got himself demoted. I was actually in a relationship with his older son at the time... Then he just... left me."

"Why on earth would he do that?" Krillin quickly slapped a hand over his mouth. 'Why the heck did I just ask that out loud?!'

"Said he'd been embarrassed enough by his father and didn't need to be embarrassed by being seen with me on top of it." She sighed. "Idiot was just playing politics the whole time, hoping that if he married into my family, he becomes nobility… He's far too ambitious for his own good, or anyone else's. He's a constant pain, too." She scowled. "I don't want to talk about him anymore."

"But his father… he was good. So was his younger brother, though he was a bit of a moron in his own right. Not too intelligent, but nice. Anyways, Bardock took over as our guard, protecting the library, and his other son, Kakarot would sometimes join him. But a few weeks before the purge… they found him dead out in the palace courtyard. Stabbed multiple times by the blade of either a Royal or a high-ranked guard. And Kakarot was put in prison a few days later for attacking the Prince and making 'wild accusations'. After that... Father started spending most of his time down here."

"Oh. Wow… sorry about that Bardock guy. Sounds pretty cool." He scratched at the back of his head again. "Umm, I've just got one more question. What's up with that symbol that keeps popping up everywhere?"

"That would be the Royal Seal. It's stamped on pretty much everything that they own. You'll see it quite a bit when you go to the city. Theirs, and the seals of the other nobles. Not much is really privately owned."

"Really?" Krillin cocked his head. "Well then, does your family have a Seal?"

"Yes. In fact, you'll see it in a moment. It's along the hall leading to the library."

They came to a stop at the foot of the stairs. Krillin looked on in amazement. The hallway was more of a chamber unto itself; the ceiling towered a good twenty feet above the floor, barely touched by the light of the torches that lit the room. The walls were covered in ornate carvings from the very top to the bottom save for one large stained-glass window, depicting everything from what appeared to be daily life for an ancient race to strange alien creatures that may or may not have been native to this world. Set about five feet out from the walls were metal poles, each after the other in ten foot intervals. On each was a white banner designed to reflect the light, and in the center was a simple depiction of a blue circle within a gold circle.

"Wow…" was all Krillin could say. The place was absolutely stunning! It was beautiful, awe inspiring and downright cool all rolled into one!

His eyes fell on the banners, reflecting the light to seem brighter than usual. "Wow… so is that your family's seal…?"

Juu frowned slightly. "Yeah, it is. My dad designed it based on a picture he found in one of the books in his library. I'm not sure why… just brings back some bad memories."

"What's it supposed to be?" he asked.

"It's… from an old religious text. Supposed to be a halo. He picked it because of my mother… Says it reminds him of her." She hung her head slightly. "I miss her sometimes."

"Oh. Um, if you don't mind my asking… how did she…?"

"You wanna know how she died?" Juuhachi glared at him. "She died because some IDIOT wasn't careful about where he was shooting off during a sparring match, that's why! Trying to show off how strong he was, and he hit her! "She jabbed her finger at the room's only window. "Came right through there! All she was doing was looking at those… stupid carvings." She fought back tears. "My brother was there with her… he actually had to see it… saw our mom get a hole blown right through her chest by some giant bald fool who just laughed at how 'she must've been weak if he killed her that easy'. Right in his face, just a little kid… now my brother's gone too…"

Krillin wasn't sure what to say. He'd never really had a chance to know his mother OR father, and siblings… he never had anyone he could call a brother or sister. "I'm really sorry… wish I could say I know how you feel. My parents abandoned me when I was a baby, so… I don't have any brothers or sisters, either…"

Juuhachi looked at him with an icy cold gaze. "Well then you can't possibly know what it's like to lose them, can you? You can't even pretend to know what that's like!" Her hands balled into fists. "If there's one thing I DON'T need, it's YOUR sympathy, alright?!" She stormed off down the hall toward the large door, Krillin following behind her, dragging his feet.

'Just a slave. That's all. Nothing can change it…'

* * *

_Seriously, I've got more to come, but it won't be until a little later. But keep watching for it, folks!_


	10. Chapter 10 Origin Warning

**Fulfillment**

_Wow. It's been a while, huh? Sorry about that. Been busy out here in the real world and whatnot. Well, I suppose I should get right down to it, eh? This one might be a tad short, but it's just some backstory for our resident villain. Figured you guys deserve it for being so patient and not giving up on me. Here goes:_

* * *

**Chapter 10**

The ship was silent, save for the heavy panting breaths of the Captain. His eyes darted back and forth at the sights around him.

Members of his crew scattered about in pieces.

His one remaining crew member, staring blankly, mouth agape in shock at the sheer terror of their situation.

The sharp needle tip of that tail pointed a mere inch from his face.

And finally, they settled on the creature's eyes. Glowing pools of orange, locked dead upon the captain, refusing to even blink. Eyes filled with hatred as he spoke.

"My name is Cell. So very nice to meet you… Captain." A smile crept onto his features. "What's the matter? You seem a bit…" he flicked his tail across Ginyu's nose, leaving a faint scratch. "…Tense."

The Captain began visibly shaking. "W-w-what do you want from me?"

The monster's eyes narrowed, and the glow in them intensified. "What do I want?" He thrust his tail forward, embedding it in the wall behind the captain's head, causing a large tear from floor to ceiling. "I want you to pay!" he shouted.

"Pay for what?" the captain whimpered. "I swear, I've never even seen you before. I didn't do anything…"

Cell clamped a hand around Ginyu's throat and lifted him up off the floor. "You're the one responsible for putting me in that hell hole I spent most of my LIFE in! YOU told them to sell me! Treated me as if I were some… some PET!" Cell roughly hauled him into the air over his head. "And now…" He took a step forward and hurled him through the wall, an eruption of sparks and metal shards flying around him.

"…Now you pay, dear Captain."

"CAPTAIN!" Cell turned his head just in time to see a blur of orange as a knee slammed into his face, forcing him to take a step back. Taking advantage of his opponent's disorientation, Jeice threw himself forward, firing a flurry of punches and kicks into the creature's midsection. "I'll turn you into slag, you freak!"

"JEICE! Move away, now!" Upon hearing his captain's order, the white-haired warrior reflexively threw himself to the side, whirling to see his captain holding a very familiar gun. Ginyu pulled the trigger and a green glob flew forth from the nozzle, slamming into the monster's left leg and pinning it to the hull behind him.

Cell tried to yank his foot away, but to no avail. It had been stuck fast to the wall, the substance maintaining a rubbery quality that proved quite resistant to breaking. He yanked hard, pulling with all his might, as the green goo was stretched seemingly to its very limit, and snapped back firmly into place, slamming his foot harshly against the back wall. He glared fiercely at the now grinning captain. "You fool. You think this will stop me?"

Harsh laughter filled the room. "Oh, I'm relatively certain it'll be sufficient for the task at hand. But just to be sure…" the captain fired off three more shots in rapid succession, pining Cell's midsection, other leg and right arm securely into place. "I like these odds a whole lot better! You're a strong one you are… and I'm sure we have yet to see exactly how strong." The Captain dropped the gun. And raised a hand to the device he wore over his eye, pressing a button. "Jeice, I want a good reading on this guy. Rough him up a little, would ya? Let's see what happens when he gets mad."

Jeice cracked his knuckles in anticipation. "My pleasure, Cap'n." He chuckled. "Seems I get to have the fun this time, eh?" The creature just glared and pulled lightly at his restraints as Jeice took a step forward. "Not feeling so cocky now, are we? That's understandable, I s'pose. After all…" Jeice suddenly leapt forward and viciously slammed a fist into the creature's midsection. "…If I was about to get my ass kicked by me, I'd be pretty nervous too."

Cell, made a retching noise as the fist was slowly removed from his gut. "Aw, what's the matter, big fella? Got a sensitive tummy, have you? Well here, lemme help you forget it!" His foot flew straight up and connected with the monster's chin, snapping Cell's head back so hard that it left a dent in the wall behind him.

He slowly lowered his head and glared again at the red-orange space pirate, the ear to ear grin on his red-orange face eliciting a low growl from the creature ensnared before him. 'I warn you, little fool… it would not be wise to anger me furth-" A sharp slap across the face cut him off from speaking further.

"And what exactly do you think you can do, green boy?" Jeice taunted. "You're in a bit of a sticky situation at the moment." He thrust forward a fist. "And right now, I call the shots!"

Ginyu watched with amusement as his lieutenant continued to pummel the green creature, the number on his Scouter rapidly climbing as he did. 'Well well, he thought to himself, 'this is turning out much better than I had hoped. That high already…' He smiled to himself. "That's enough, Jeice," he ordered. Move out of the way. Now."

Jeice turned to look at his captain. "Aw, c'mon! I was just starting to have fun!" Ginyu shifted his gaze to the creature and saw an arm, the one loose arm, raised in the air and a fist flying toward the back of Jeice's head. "JEICE, LOOK OUT! NOW!" Jeice spun back around just in time to see the fist that slammed into his eye, as he felt exploding pain, blood erupting from the socket as his right eye ruptured from the impact. The short man took a knee and screamed, his snow white hair now stained with his own blood.

"Damn it Jeice, when I say to move, I mean MOVE!" Ginyu barked as his lieutenant scrambled away from the reach of the now smirking creature's arm. "Now I have to waste time sticking you in a healing chamber." He looked back at the monster, mirroring the smirk on the creature's face. "As for you, I must say, I'm impressed. You peaked at nearly 300,000. Mighty impressive indeed. I haven't seen power that high in quite some time." He nodded over at the gun on the floor. "Unfortunately for you, the more power you put out, the stronger the stuff in that gun gets. Feeds off your own strength. Ingenious, no

Cell lightly rolled his eyes. "Oh yes, ever so clever of you to invent a glorified children's toy."

"You scoff, and yet… you seem to be the one stuck, don't you." Ginyu laughed and wagged a finger at him. "There IS a trick to getting out of it, though. Pity you don't know it. And for the record, we didn't 'invent' anything. That happened to have been invented by one of those Earthling scientists that have become so famous lately."

Cell's smirk faded. "Really now? Pray tell, how did the likes of YOU manage to come across it then?"

"I'm a pirate, fool! How do you think we got it? Raided a cargo ship full of all kinds of…" His eyes widened. "Wait… That's where…"

* * *

_Captain Ginyu looked out on the wreckage of the cargo ship floating no more than a few hundred feet from their ship, the elongated hull nearly snapped in half, its engine pods stripped clean away and floating through space… his latest conquest. She'd been a lightly armed craft, built for speed, not for combat, counting on being able to outrun rather than outfight any potential attackers._

_Not the best idea against a ship like his, he noted with deep satisfaction. The only pirate in space with an actual warship to his name. Normal tactics were insufficient against his ship; it was fast, rivaling the above-average cargo ships', it had weapons that could hold their own even against hunter craft… it made him unstoppable. And the precision with which those weapons fired was nothing short of amazing, allowing him to merely cripple ships that other ships would have wound up destroying and thus ruin their opportunity for plunder._

_Plunder, he noted with glee, that he was in no way lacking as the retrieval ships were making their fifth run back from the ship, some carrying plunder, others with salvaged parts from the ship. Never hurt to have free spare parts around, did it? It was looking like all those years of being Lord Frieza's stooge had finally paid off for him._

_A knock on his door stirred him from his thoughts. "Captain. We have a ssssample of the plunder ssssir," a reptilian voice called from the other side. Ginyu's smile changed to an outright grin as he walked over to his console and pressed a button. "Enter!" he called out, rubbing his hands together eagerly. Nothing was better than getting his hands on his new acquisitions._

_A small blue alien with yellow hair stepped through the door. 'Captain," he hissed, a thin forked tongue darting out between his lips "Jeice ssssent me up here with a few thingsssss. I hope they are to your liking." He entered the room, pulling a small hover cart behind him. "It appearsss we encountered something shipping experimental weaponsssss."_

_Ginyu reached into the cart and rifled through the weapons within, most of them long nozzeled guns. "What exactly do these do?" he asked. The small alien shuffled his feet as his tongue darted rapidly. "Well, it would sssseem that it firesss some sssort of green ssssubsstance. It wasss used on those sssssSaiyans quite effectively. Held them in placcce while we managed to raid…"_

_Ginyu rubbed his chin and smiled. "Interesting. These things could be useful… but it's not like those monkeys to take live prisoners." He turned the gun over and inspected it carefully. There, placed at the base of the gun's grip was a strange insignia, a sort of letter c inside of a larger c. "Who made these?"_

"_Well, the ship wasss headed for the ice planet Hikoori, sssir." The alien replied. Mossst likely from their recent conquessst."_

"_So they came from that Earth planet, huh?" Ginyu tossed the gun back into the container. "Seems they were more intuitive than King pointy-hair gave them credit for, eh?" he fished through the cart again and came up with three other devices that appeared to be explosives, each with a ribbon with the letter R inscribed on each side as the insignia this time. "Multiple factions, eh? Must've been one hell of a fight for 'em." He dropped the devices back into the cart. "Well, I suppose these will be useful for our future ambitions." He looked up fondly at the straw hat sitting on the shelf above the door. "I WILL be King of the Space Pirates one day…"_

"_Well sssssir, there IS one more thing that we found. Seems odd that it was being shipped along with dangerouss weaponssss, but…"_

"_Well don't just stand there, bring it in, Scaleface!" Ginyu berated the little blue lizard, who scurried out the door and came back in with a much smaller cart, the only opening being a narrow door in the front. "Thissss was in the back locked up under triple lockssss."_

_Ginyu bent down and peeked inside. It was quite dark inside, with very little light making it more than a few inches past the opening, but he could just faintly make out the outline of something coiled in the back…_

_Suddenly it sprang forward, slamming against the door of its cage and forcing the captain to take a step back. "What IS that thing?" he bent back down to see the creature, a little quadruped creature, mostly green with flecks of black across his skin. A large orange beak appeared to serve as a mouth. Making the creature appear as some kind of bizarre mix of lizard and insect. "Is that an Earth creature?"_

"_Unlikely, sssir. I doubt they would capture only one earth creature for ssstudy or otherwise. But it ISsss most interesting." The blue alien raised a claw to scratch his head. "What should we do with thisss?" _

_Ginyu stood and waved dismissively. "Sell it to some merchant for all I care. Say it's an exotic pet. We'll be able to name our own price that way." He walked back over to the window and resumed observing the final moments of the raid. Still, he couldn't help but feel as though that little creature had been watching him, listening to his every word…_

* * *

YOU! That… that little thing in the cage was YOU!" Ginyu took a step back. "H-how?"

Cell grinned. "I'd been discovered shortly after I'd exited my larval form. I was a juvenile." His grin faded. "And you sold me as a pet."

Ginyu steadied himself and the old smirk came back. "I see. Well well, seems you've grown up to be a big strong boy, eh? Well that works out all the better for me." He raised his arms straight out to the side. "You see… I have an ambition of my own. One that I'd like to see fulfilled." His eyes flew wide. "AND YOUR BODY IS JUST THE THING TO HELP ME DO IT!" A strange aura began to glow around him. "CHANGE…!"

Cell quickly whipped out his tail and wrapped it around the leg of the still wounded Jeice. Faster than either of them could react, he hauled him up off the ground and threw him at Ginyu with all his might.

"NO-OOOF!" Ginyu's breath was knocked out of him and the aura faded as Jeice's skull collided with the captain's midriff with enough force to crack his armor. The two of them fell into a heap in the middle of the floor, one still sobbing about his injured gut, the other now unconscious.

Cell quickly flicked his tail over the slime globs covering his body, neatly slicing through each of them and made his way over to his victims. Ginyu lay gasping, struggling to regain his ability to breathe evenly, when he felt the needle-point of Cell's tail at his throat. "You're right captain," a cold gravelly voice spoke. "I did grow up. In a cage. A cage you put me in. For months I wanted nothing more than revenge, to slice you open and feed you your own entrails." The tail moved away from his throat. Ginyu looked up in shock at his attacker, still gasping for air.

"But then, captain. A voice spoke to me. The voice of my creator. And he told me of my purpose, explained why I existed. And suddenly little else mattered." He closed his eyes and smiled the deranged smile of a madman. "Especially when I recently experienced part of that goal… and learned how to complete the rest of it." His eyes snapped open again and he glared at the captain. "But you see, I cannot do it alone. On the ground I would be fine, but it's getting there that's the trouble. And that, oh foolish one is where you come in."

Ginyu rolled over, and rose to his hands and knees, still shaky. "H-how am I supposed… to help?" He *felt a sharp kick to his shoulder and fell back, forced to look the creature in the eye. "You have a home base, do you not? Some kind of haven for you and your fellow scum?" He nodded weakly. "Good. That's our next stop." He pointed his tail at the heap of Jeice lying on the floor. "And heal this one, quickly. Can't afford to have him die… yet." Ginyu watched in fear as the creature walked over to the entrance he had busted in not so long ago and grabbed the headless body of Burter before starting down the halls of the ship. "STOP!" he called. "Where are you going?"

The monster known as Cell looked over his shoulder and flashed that same evil grin. "To have myself a little… snack."

* * *

_Well, that's it for this time around. Hope you guys feel it was worth the wait. Thanks for sticking with me guys. You rock. And if you like, don't like, whatever, please review. Be nice to know who all's still following this one. ;) Later._


	11. Chapter 11

**Fulfillment**

_Yeah, this is gonna be extremely short. But I wanted y'all to know that I haven't given up. Not yet. In fact, I have returned! Muahaha... and such. And now, **onward!**_

**Chapter 11**

The landscape was changed now. Likely forever.

Where once there had been great forests, there were charred remnants of wood and ash, devoid of life. Lush green valleys now ran like jagged scars across the landscape, littered with the carcasses of human and animal alike. Islands that were veritable tropical paradises were now seething and boiling, spewing lava and ash after being broken open by the volleys falling from the sky; whether the first or the final, none were sure. Then again, none were really sure why they had been targeted in the first place.

Little life remained on this world. Mostly birds, fish, the odd small forest creature scouring the few trees left for sustenance… and a few small groups of humans. Most of them tried to form small communities, shanty towns scrounging food from wherever they could, living in makeshift shelters of metal and cloth, wood and stone, doing whatever they could to shelter themselves from the elements and the raiders that had also become a part of daily life. All of them however avoided the city. The city was no the home of the anthros, the animal people who'd since gone feral. Very few groups of humans had been seen within, and they were just as crazy… to enter there without a large, well-armed crew was death.

And so the hellish cycle went on, watched by a single pair of tired eyes. The Traveler wrapped his scarf around his neck a bit more snugly and pulled his hood closed as much as possible, trying to remain warm in the frigid lands where the fortress in the sky had fallen. Great rooms and palatial decorations; a throne, marble columns, exotic plants, all lay scattered and broken into pieces. Very few things had survived the fall, but what was still salvageable he collected. An ornate bottle, some sacred seals, a model of a dragon still encased in glass somehow unbroken, all went into a small sack which he drew tightly shut. His eyes lingered for a moment, taking in the scene, settling on a bloody turban resting near the throne. Tears welled up in his eyes as he turned away, heading out into the wilds of the world.

The time for mourning would come later. The time for self-blame would come later. But for now, there were still living beings on the planet. For no… he still had a job to do.


	12. Chapter 12

**Fulfillment**

_**Not a whole lot to talk about here. Just time to get to the update that you guys have so patiently awaited. Enjoy!**_

* * *

**Chapter 12**

Krillin stood at the large entrance at the end of the hall. The door, while being a large wooden monster, was simple enough in design. Just a large squared entrance with hinges of some unknown metal. 'Kinda reminds me of the doors at the Red Ribbon castle…'

His eyes widened as Juuhachi flung the door open with no more than a small grunts and stormed inside, bots clacking against the stone floor. "Pick your damn jaw off the floor and keep up!" she called to him. Krillin silently obeyed and followed behind, taking note of the large room.

Ringing the room were several display cases, containing what seemed to be various old relics. Chunks of masonry, crude pottery, the occasional tablet or parchment was seen as well. next to them were what appeared to be small bookcases, each containing a few rows of large books. It almost seemed to be a library, but for one as grand as a palace library, he couldn't help but notice it was... well, pitiably small.

Situated in the center of the back of the room, however, was a large stone table, surrounded by equally large chairs. Krillin's wide eyes found themselves resting upon the table's sole occupant, an elder Saiyan whose dark brown hair had begun to gray, dressed in a formal but not opulent fashion- a blue and gold sash over plain black Saiyan armor. Krillin was taken aback by the clearly obligatory false smile the man wore and mentally chastised himself. He knew there was no reason to distrust this one's intentions, but there was still something unnatural and frightening about seeing these butchers smile...

The man raised a hand in greeting. "Greetings daughter. I see you've brought your new companion with you."

Juuhachi snorted derisively. "Yes. As you asked. Let's not play like it's anything but an ordered appearance."

His smile dropped and he averted his eyes for a moment. "I understand your anger, child. I do. But there is a time and place for this discussion." The smile returned and his dark eyes fixed on Krillin again. "Now then, I suppose introductions are in order. I am Daifu, head of one of the five Families. Welcome to our home."

Krillin nodded his head lightly and waved. "Um.. hello. I'm Krillin." He looked around the room. "So uh... if you don't mind m asking, what is this place?

"Well, Krillin, this happens to be the official records of our people." He gestured to the room around him. "All you see here are the salvaged remains of our people's history. As you can see, it's not much, and it's been quite hard to put together, but it is what we have." He smiled. "It was always a passion of mine, trying to learn of the mysterious past. It's how I met my mate, in fact-"

An abrupt slam echoed through the room causing Krillin to jump and turn to see an angry Juuhachi, fists clenched, foot buried in the remains of a destroyed chair. Her eyes were moist and her face flushed as she spoke. "If there's no reason you need me here, I'm leaving. Now." Daifu sighed softly and dismissed her with a wave as she spun on her heels and stormed from the room, slamming the large doors behind her.

Rubbing his temples, Daifu continued. "You'll have to excuse her. She's been uner much emotional strain as of late. Her brother was lost to us not long ago."

Krillin frowned, looking back toward the doors she'd left through. "Oh my... I had no idea." He looked back to the old Saiyan. "I know how hard you must be taking this."

To his utter shock Diafu looked at him quizzically for a moment, as if trying to discern what he meant before finally dismissing it with a shrug, and in that instant Krillin remembered. These people were a race of barbaric conquerors, death was as common to them as breathing. The cold demeanor sent a chill down his spine as Daifu continued.

"Now is not the time for such talk. I've asked you here because, as mysterious and odd our own past may be, I find myself even more intrigued about your own." He swept his arm wide "Think about it! An entire alien civilization to learn about, to glean from! Endless possibilities of learning and discovery." He pointed at Krillin. "That, human, is where you come in. I've asked you here for a cultural exchange of sorts. Swapping stories if you will. I want to learn as much about your people while there's still things to learn as is possible. And in return," he gestured to the room around him, "I will offer up ours as well."

He laughed as Krillin blinked in confusion. "I'm sure you have many questions," Daifu said, folding his hands on the table in front of him. "Our culture is likely quite different from anything you witnessed on Earth; that's what the texts my people salvaged seem to convey at least."

Krillin ran a hand through his short hair. "I do, actually… but-uh, not quite sure.. I mean, what's off-limits and such?"

"Nothing is off-limits, per se," the elder Saiyan chuckled. "This is really nothing more than a school lesson I'm offering. Information that could prove useful to you, seeing as there are certain people here looking for any and every excuse to use a rod on a sla-," He noticed his daughter's eyes narrow at him. "A CAPTIVE such as yourself. And as much as I dislike the practice, the Law permits them to do so. No one can protect you from the law, not even me." He motioned to the chair in front of him. "You may wish to sit down for this. What I need to tell you may not be too much, but it shall take a bit nonetheless."

Krillin slowly lowered himself onto the seat. As the old Saiyan stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Now then, where to begin...?" 

* * *

Juuhachi slammed the door of her bedroom behind her, eyes red and moist, tears streaking down her face as she slid down to the floor. "Why?" she breathed out. "Why did they have to take you away too? You were my only friends, you were all I had and now..."

She rested her head on her knees and sobbed for the first time in days.

"I'm all alone..."

* * *

_**Well yeah... sadly this isn't as long as I had hoped. I had actually written a far longer chapter, starting in on the Saiyan culture as I'm fleshing it out based on what we do know, and a bit of playful re-imagining in this alternate turn of events... and the dang word processor didn't save. So I had to re-write from scratch, and since I didn't want to make people wait yet another month or so for an update... here's this. The next one will have all the juicy stuff, I promise.**_

_**Until then... See ya.**_


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